Daddy's Little Lullaby
by Lullaby-Dream-24
Summary: When Remus Lupin's daughter, Lullaby, loses her mother and transfers to Hogwarts, things are never the same. Takes place during GoF.
1. My Daughter

No one knew the secret that haunted Remus Lupin for the past fourteen years. His first and only love, Elizabeth Malkovich, married him in a secret, private ceremony, and had given birth to his daughter, Lullaby Dream Lupin, while away on a trip to visit her parents in the United States.

When he received the news, he and Elizabeth decided that with the war against Voldemort, it was safer for his daughter to grow up in a place that would keep her safe.

In his less-than-perfect home, his pride and joy, his sweet baby angel, his little girl, sat on the window seat, writing in her diary, as she often did. Watching her with tired eyes, he began to think back to when she had entered his life officially.

No, it was not the day she was born. True, they had stayed in touch through letters and pictures. That all changed when he received a letter written in a messy scrawl, he knew something was wrong.

It was hard for Remus to truly believe that Elizabeth was in a car accident and that she had died in surgery.

That was three weeks ago today. He still remembered the letter, word for word, that he received from his daughter.

'_Dearest Daddy,_

_I have no idea what to do. As my father, I hope you can tell me what to do. I suppose I should tell you why I'm so confused. Mommy was on her way home from work on Thursday evening when a logging truck came out of nowhere. She died while on the operating table shortly after two-thirty on Friday morning. With Gram-Gram and Papa-Bear both gone, I don't know where to go or what to do. I need you to help me figure out how to sort out my conundrum. _

_Love Always,_

_Lullaby D. Lupin XOXOXO'_

He hurried to his daughter's side. He arrived the day before the funeral service. Lullaby had already decided what she wanted done for her mother.

After Remus had arrived, they went through Elizabeth's possessions and found a magically locking ceramic urn that was detailed with different colored pixies and fairies.

Remus recalled the night he gave that urn to his Lizzie-Bear. It was the night of their secret marriage ceremony. It was actually a three-piece set.

Her parents each had their ashes in the other two urns. His in-laws had died about five years earlier.

A cremation ceremony was less expensive, and after all the little details were sorted out, Lullaby would be able to take her mother and grandparents with her.

So, here they were, three weeks later, still getting used to actually being in close quarters with each other. It was the day before Lullaby's 14th birthday. All of her documents had been sent from Winterland Academy of Magic, nestled about two hours away from Salem, Massachusetts, and she would be starting school at Hogwarts in only one months' time.

It took Remus about a minute to realize that his daughter had stopped writing and was staring at him, tears threatening to fall down her cheeks.

Straightening from his position against the door frame, Remus opened his arms wide, inviting his precious Lullaby into them. The moment she was nestled against him, he wrapped his arms tight around her.

After what seemed like an eternity, Lullaby's shoulders stopped shaking and her grip loosened. It only took a second for Remus to notice that she cried herself to sleep before he cradled her in his arms, then carried her into the tiny bedroom that they shared.

Remus had offered to take the living room, but Lullaby begged and pleaded that he share the bed with her. So, every night, Remus lay on his side, as did his daughter, facing one another, with Lullaby clutching onto him for dear life, like she was afraid he was gonna be taken away from her as well.

After he laid her down, there was a scratching at the door. Quietly walking through the kitchen, Remus opened the door, and a large black dog padded into the small house. Remus hurried to close all of the blinds and curtains in the whole house.

As soon as he finished, Remus returned to the kitchen, giving the go-ahead to change. Within seconds, instead of a dog, a man stood in the middle of the kitchen.

The two men embraced briefly before the new-comer asked his question.

"So, Remus, what's the big emergency?"

"Sirius, you remember my girlfriend, Elizabeth?"

"Malkovich? Yeah, of course. Why?"

"We got married in secret. Fifteen years, this Halloween. However, tomorrow is our daughter's 14th birthday. Elizabeth died three weeks ago, and I have no idea wha-"

"Remus, hang on a minute. You got married? And had a baby? And didn't tell me or James?"

"Lizzie had Lullaby while she was visiting her parents in America. We stayed in contact through phone calls and letters. With the war against Voldemort raging on at the time, Lizzie and I agreed on having Lullaby growing up away from the fighting and the deaths. And after what happened that night, I knew it wouldn't be safe to bring them home. Not with the Death Eaters out there. But now, there's a small problem."

"Oh, and what is that?"

"Lizzie died three weeks ago. She was an only child. And her parents died five years ago. I'm all Lullaby has left. She's transferring to Hogwarts this year."

"Elizabeth's gone? How? When?"

"In the hospital, on the operating table, after an accident with a logging truck. It was three weeks ago."

"So, where's the girl now?"

"Sleeping. An hour ago, she was writing in her diary. Twenty minutes later, she's crying and shivering uncontrollably. Fifteen minutes later, she's asleep from being physically and emotionally drained, barely touching her meals, and crying for hours on end. I don't know how to help her, Sirius."

"I don't know either, Remus. Who all knows about this?"

"Just you. And Dumbledore."

"Ask him what to do."

Remus stood there, thinking about it.

"You know what, I hadn't thought of that."

It was quiet in the kitchen, except for the scratching of a quill on parchment. Finally, after five minutes, Sirius got tired of sitting there. He decided to explore a little bit while Remus continued writing.

Within minutes, Sirius located the bedroom, where he spotted Lullaby, squeezing a pillow for dear life. He couldn't believe this little girl was Remus' daughter. She was simply stunning.

Upon closer inspection, he noticed that her long, sleek black hair had a lovely purple tint when the light hit it just right. Her skin was like that of a porcelain doll: light and creamy in color, and after grazing his fingers over her arm, found that it was as soft and smooth as velvet.

Leaving the room, he thought about how lucky his friend was to have a child to take care of. He entered the kitchen just as Remus was placing tea and muffins on the table.

"Your daughter is beautiful, Remus. You're lucky."

The two men sat down at the table, across from each other, sipping their tea.

"Thanks. She'll be awake in about half an hour. She cries for about fifteen minutes then sleeps for an hour. She's too upset to eat and when she does, it's only two or three bites. She writes in her diary almost twelve hours a day. When she does sleep longer than an hour, it's only when I'm with her, letting her squeeze the breath out of me. Three weeks, Sirius. And next week is the full moon. I don't know what to do."

Sobbing, Remus put his head in his hands, his shoulders shaking. Suddenly, there was a noise in the door way.

"Daddy, are you okay?"

Looking at his daughter, Remus wiped away the tears as Lullaby rushed forward, her thumbs removing the tears for him.

"Daddy, please don't cry. I don't wanna see you sad, Daddy."

"Lulls, I have something to tell you, Princess. In a few days, I'll have to leave you with someone else."

"Why, Daddy? Did I do something wrong?"

"No, baby, you didn't do anything wrong. It'll only be for a week. Lullaby, I've a prob-"

"Mommy already told me. You're a werewolf. But, Daddy, I don't wanna leave you."

"It's only for a few days, I promise. I just can't have you around during the full moon. I'm trying to keep you safe. Oh, here's Dumbledore's response."

Remus pulled the letter from the owl's beak then read it silently once before reading it aloud.

" '_Remus,_

_I truly have no idea what you're going through right now, but I believe that the Weasley's will be able to help during the full moon. It also happens to be the Quidditch World Cup, and coincidentally, I have a ticket for the same box as the Weasley's. Unfortunately, I am unable to attend this year. Arthur will swing by after work tomorrow to meet the girl. _

_Regards, _

_Albus P. W. B. Dumbledore'"_

"That man is still a bloody wonder."

"Yes, he is, Sirius. Oh, Lullaby, this is an old friend of mine, Sirius Black."

"S-S-Sirius B-B-Black? Daddy, are you crazy?"

"He was wrongfully imprisoned. Trust me. I trust Sirius with my life. And, Sirius, this is my daughter, Lullaby. She'll be fourteen tomorrow. Speaking of which, it's time for supper, so we can get to bed. Your first birthday with me. Big day planned for us. Thanks for your help, Sirius. See you later, unless you wanna stay here. Arthur won't here for about twenty-one hours. Stay here with us tonight."

"I guess it wouldn't hurt. I call couch!"

"Scratch what I said before, Daddy. You're not crazy. He is. I think I'm actually just gonna get a protein shake then go back to bed. I'm not very hungry."

"Baby, you're never hungry. Please, I beg of you, eat at least one full meal. You're starting to waste away. No sleep, no food, and nothing but tears. Please, baby, for Daddy, eat."

Remus pulled his daughter into a hug, whispering into her soft hair. When he looked at her after she pulled back a little, he noticed that her vibrant Amethyst-colored eyes were, yet again, glistening with tears. She nodded lightly and gave him a tiny, barely-there smile.

"Okay, Daddy. A peanut butter and jelly sandwich would be nice. And a glass of milk, please."

Sighing as he got up, Remus began to make his daughter what she had asked for. _'Well, at least it's more than what she normally eats. I'm happy about that.'_ It placed it on the table where, a minute ago, Lullaby had been sitting.

Puzzled, he began to look for her. Shaking his head, Remus found her sitting on the window seat, once again, writing in her diary. He walked over and put her sandwich and milk on the table beside her.

"Here you are, Lulls. Thank you for eating. I expect every bite to be eaten."

"Of course, Daddy. Thank you."

After sitting next to Sirius, Remus reclined back and let out a soft sigh.

"Heh. Parenthood that rough?"

"No. With her being awake most of the time, I don't get very much sleep. And with the full moon coming up, my energy levels are gonna be so far down, it won't be funny."

It was silent for about five minutes before Lullaby was finished eating. Looking up, Remus saw his daughter watching Sirius with cautious eyes. And glancing at Sirius, he noticed that his friend was watching Lullaby carefully, apprehensively, looking for any clue as to discomfort.

"Daddy, I'm going to bed. I'm quite tired. Please feel free to stay out here, with your friend, and catch up. Good night, Daddy. Good night, Mr. Black."

"Sirius. Please, call me Sirius. And good night, Lullaby."

"Sweet dreams, baby. Are you sure you don't want me to tuck you in?"

"I'm sure, Daddy."

Turning, Lullaby headed for the bedroom and closed the door the moment she was fully inside. In the living room, Sirius let out a breath he wasn't aware he was holding.

"Well, she is a little angel, isn't she? Once again, you're so lucky. I still can't believe you didn't say anything to me, James, or even Lily. You know what? Go to bed. Mr. Weasley won't be here until the evening, so we can talk tomorrow."

"You sure?"

"Positive. Now, you need your sleep. Good night, Moony."

"Good night, Padfoot. See you in the morning."


	2. Birthday Morning

Rolling over, Remus looks at the clock and sees that the time is seven-thirty in the morning. Groaning, he rolls over to where his daughter lay sleeping, or had been.

Sitting up with a jolt of panic, Remus begins looking around the small bedroom, trying to see his daughter. Suddenly, he hears laughter. Not just one voice, but two. One of which he recognized as Sirius' booming bark. The other one he couldn't place.

It sounded a lot like a mix of angels singing and wind chimes blowing gently in the breeze. Curious as to who this other laugh belonged to, Remus got out of bed, and walked out to the kitchen.

And there, in the kitchen, standing by the stove, was Lullaby, making omelets, bacon, and toast. Sirius was sitting at the table, telling Lullaby a story from the 'good old days' as they were known as to the marauders.

Remus stayed in the door way, watching the two with a small smile on his face. When Sirius finished with his current story, Lullaby couldn't control the giggles, therefore releasing that same heavenly sound that Remus couldn't pinpoint.

'_Well, it's no wonder Lizzie named her Lullaby. It's nice to see her smile, too. Good thing she isn't nervous about Sirius being around anymore. I wonder how this happened.'_

"Mommy told me that story, but not with so much detail. It's funnier when you tell it, Sirius. Here's your omelet: three eggs, diced ham, grated cheddar cheese, chopped onions and green peppers, and a dash of Tabasco sauce. There's also three strips of bacon, and two pieces of toast, buttered with raspberry jam. Oh, good morning, Daddy."

Walking over, Lullaby gave Remus a hug and kiss, and pulled him to a chair. After, literally, pushing him down onto the chair, she asked what he wanted on his omelet.

"Happy birthday, Lulls. I guess I'll take two eggs, ham, cheese, and onions. Thank you, sweetheart."

"Of course, Daddy."

"By the way, what happened to the depressed little girl that was apprehensive about being near Sirius?"

"I accidentally knocked over a vase on my way through the living room. It woke him. After I picked up the mess, he started telling me stories about when you, James, and Sirius went to Hogwarts. A regular bunch of trouble makers, weren't you?"

"Yes, we were, but I was the responsible one. I thought things through, going through every possible backfire. And if something did go wrong, I stepped up."

'_She's happier than she was yesterday. I glad for that. Maybe I can talk Sirius into watching her for a couple of hours after lunch while I take a nap.'_

"Hey, Daddy, can you tell me about what Mommy was like in school. She says that she wanted to leave the past in the past. That she had bad memories before you guys got together."

"Honey, your mother and I didn't actually get together until the end of our sixth year. For nearly six years, she was tormented by most of the other students. And it was because she was a muggle-born witch. But one night, during our fifth year, she was raped by four Slytherin boys, all in our year. She ended up pregnant, and when she was six months along, and really starting to show, the boys who raped her found out. The nurse, Madame Pomfrey, had each of the boys come in and do a DNA test to see which one was the father."

Lullaby reached foreward and wiped away a tear he didn't realize was there before asking him to continue.

"Baby, the father was Lucious Malfoy. At the time he was dating Sirius' cousin, Narcissa Black. Now, they're married, and have a son named Draco. But, anyway, when Lucious found out that he was the father, he tracked her down and rammed his knee into her stomach, not once or twice, but five times. After that, she stayed in the infirmary for about three days, crying. Not for the knees to the stomach, but for the fact that she had lost the baby."

"So that's why she didn't wanna talk about school. I always wanted to know why she was so over-protective of me. Now I know that some people are sick enough to do that."

Nodding, Remus finished wiping his tears away before he finished his story.

"It was shortly after that when your mother became good friends with Lily Evans. James had the biggest crush on Lily. He and Sirius worked so very hard to impress her, while I stayed in the background and let them make complete fools of themselves. During that time, your mother and I became good friends. We were in the same house and had the same classes, except for one. She had Divination and I had Ancient Ruins. Other than that, we had every class together. Everyone left her alone when they saw I was walking with her. If they messed with me, they messed with James and Sirius, which most never wanted to do. A year later, Lizzie and I started dating, then a little over a year after that, during graduation, I proposed to her."

Lullaby looked over at Sirius, who nodded, letting her know it was all true, and she wiped her tears away.

"She felt safe with me being around. We only held hands for the first three months of our being a couple, then start giving each other a good morning and good night kiss everyday. After about eight or nine months, we started sneaking kisses during meals and class. On the morning of graduation, she pulled me into an empty classroom and engaged me in a heavy snogging session. After we were in there for twenty minutes, poor Sirius walked in, saw us, blushed crimson, then walked out, shutting the door behind him."

"What happened, Sirius?"

Shaking his head, Sirius looked up at Lullaby, a pink tint entering his face.

"Remus was laying across a desk, and your mother, Elizabeth, was straddling him. He was shirtless. Apparently your mother had pulled it off sometime during the twenty minutes they were alone. I still can't get the image out of my head."

Glaring at his friend, Remus continued the tale.

"That afternoon, I asked your mom to marry me. We continued doing what we had been since we got together. It was almost a year and a half before we secretly got married. I'll always remember that night, like it was yesterday. It was my first time at all, and her first time, without the violence. She had been a virgin when the attack happened. Four years since the attack from the Slytherin boys. Three and a half years since she lost the baby, and we became friends. Two and a half years since we got together and I told her that I wouldn't touch her that way until she was ready. And one and a half years since I proposed to her. Nine months and one day after the wedding you were born. I missed out on the birth of my own little princess."

Now, the water works were in full force as Remus recalled the past that lead to his child. Lullaby pulled out one of her lacy hankies and wiped away her father's tears.

Sirius was almost ready to cry as well, not only because of the memory, but also because of the touching scene between father and daughter. Then, after nearly five minutes, Remus finally calmed down enough to talk again.

"And Lily was the only one to know about anything. At least, until the end of that June."

"Wait. What? How did Lily know and keep it secret?"

"Lizzie told her and begged her to keep quiet. About a week before Lizzie went to visit her parents, Lizzie and I got together with Lily and James, to discuss some things. Oh, before I forget, Lulls, go take a shower and get ready. I have a fun day planned for all of us."

"Yes, Daddy. But I thought Sirius was still a wanted criminal in the wizarding world."

"He's an animagus. Illegally, but an animagus, nonetheless."

"Okay. I'll be out in a bit."

Kissing her father on the cheek, Lullaby got up from the table, and then left the kitchen. After hearing the shower start up, Sirius turned his attention to Remus.

"Okay, what did the four of you have to discuss that you all felt I needed to be left out of?"

Sighing, Remus began his explanation.

"After we found out that Lily was having a boy and Lizzie was having a girl, James thought it would be a good idea to set them up in an arranged marriage. Of course, Lizzie and Lily were excited at the thought. They pointed out that there would be no reason to drift apart if we were gonna be brought together for the holidays and get-togethers. I was hesitant at first. But they managed to turn me on to the idea. And by way, Harry's birthday was yesterday. Fourteen years old. Can you believe it?"

"Wow. No, I can't believe it. Speaking of Harry. You know he's gonna kill you for not telling him, and then he's gonna kill me for not knowing about it."

"The down side is that it's a magical binding contract. They have to marry by the age of twenty-one or they'll be cursed to live a lonely life until their dying day. Stupid old magic. But, hey, I'll have Harry in the family."

"A good side to this. She doesn't know, does she?"

"Lullaby? Not that I'm aware of. That's why I suggested a shower. So she wouldn't find out. They're too young to know yet."

"The shower just turned off."

"I heard. Now, you wanna come with us today?"

Sirius sat there thinking about it for a couple of minutes before answering.

"Only if Lullaby asks me to come with. I don't wanna get in the way of father-daughter bonding time."

"You won't get in the way. She was depressed yesterday. This morning, thanks to you, she was happy, smiling, and laughing. I haven't gotten to see or hear that once since Lizzie died. Thank you, Sirius, for doing that."

"Eh, no problem. Anything for a friend, Remus. Wow! Do you look gorgeous!"

Turning, Remus saw Lullaby standing there in the door way, dressed in a light purple tea-length sundress, with an white iridescent cardigan, and white low-wedge strappy sandals. Her long dark hair was pulled into a half-ponytail, held by a silver bejeweled barrette. And she clutched a small, simple satin purse with the letter 'L' in silver glitter on the front.

A simple silver chain graced her neck and collar-bone, while a pair of small silver hoops sat in her ears. A dainty silver bracelet was on her left wrist, while her right wrist held a thin, feminine silver watch.

And, to Remus' relief, her make-up was simple: a little black eyeliner and pale purple eyeshadow accented her eyes, light pink blush rested on her cheeks, and a rose-tinted lip-gloss high-lighted her lips.

"Wow, you are beautiful, baby. And the purple really brings out your eyes."

"Thank you, both of you. Sirius, are you coming with us?"

"Only if the birthday girl wishes it."

"Oh, please, come with us."

"Well them, your wish is my command, my princess."

As he said this, Sirius did an overly dramatic bow, lowing himself down onto one knee.

"Quit being such a drama king, Sirius. I'll be out in about ten minutes. Then Sirius can have his turn."

After Remus walked out of the room, Lullaby turned to Sirius and asked him the one question she wanted to ask him all morning, but couldn't bring herself to do so.

"Um, Sirius? Can I ask you a question?"

"I think you just did."

"Oh, be serious."

"I'm always Sirius, though."

"You know what I mean."

"Okay, ask away."

"Since my mother was an only child, and Daddy's sister died shortly before I was born during an attack on her family, I was wondering if I could, maybe, call you Uncle Sirius, instead of just Sirius. Is that okay?"

Sirius nearly started crying at her question. Yesterday, he had been afraid that she would reject him in any way, shape, or form. Now, he knew that she had been just as nervous as he had been. And he was glad to know that she accepted him, and not only that, but she also wanted to call him 'Uncle', a title reserved for a member of the family.

"Lullaby, you may call me Uncle Sirius, Sirius, Uncle, Siri, Snuffles, or Padfoot. Or any other names that you feel comfortable calling me."

And upon hearing that, Lullaby smiled brightly before walking over and giving him a kiss on the cheek and a great, big bear hug.

"Thank you for making this a good birthday, Uncle Sirius."

"It's no problem, Angelfish."

"Angelfish? It's cute. I like it, Uncle Sirius."

"Well, well. What do we have here? I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

Remus, wearing khaki slacks, a white polo, and light brown loafers, had walked into the kitchen when Sirius had called Lullaby 'Angelfish'. He was surprised about that, but was even more shocked when Lullaby approved the nickname and called him Uncle Sirius, which, he figured, she had asked about a few minute earlier.

"Daddy, Sirius has let me call him Uncle Sirius. And he gets to call me Angelfish."

"So I heard. Your turn in the shower, Sirius. I already put an outfit in there for you. Black slacks, white polo, and black loafers, as well as boxers and socks."

"Thanks, Remus. Out in a bit, Angelfish."

And with that, Sirius left the kitchen to get ready for the day that lay ahead.


	3. The Best Birthday Ever

After Sirius was finished getting ready, he entered the kitchen, only to be bowled over by an over-excited birthday girl.

"Uncle Siri, you'll never guess what Daddy has planned for us today."

Chuckling over how excited Lullaby was, Sirius replied.

"Knowing Remus as well as I do, you're probably right. I'll never be able to guess. What's the plan, then?"

"First the London Zoo, followed by a picnic by the fountain in the park, then it's off to the Royal Botanic Gardens, as known as the Kew Gardens. After that, we'll be stopping at the bakery to pick up a birthday cake, of my choice, before coming back here. It's simple, but that's what I like about it. Mommy always made a big deal about my birthday."

"Really? Why? How?"

"I don't know. Every year, she rented the town ballroom, had the food catered, a D.J. for entertainment, hired a decorator and florist, and I had to put up with a photographer and videographer. She also invited every student in my class. When I was little, attending a muggle school, it was all thirty-two of them. Thirty-three, if you include me."

"What about after you started at Winterland?"

"Then it was all seventy-nine. Eighty of us, if I'm added in to the mix. The one thing I wanted was a simple, small family thing. Five or six people, ten at most. This should be my favorite birthday. It's actually the way I want it. Mommy never understood why I enjoyed being around animals and the scenery of nature so much. Last year, my best friends, Harmony and Melody, twins, got me a whole camping set: a tent, two sleeping bags, a portable fire-pit and two bundles of firewood, a collapsible camping kitchen set, complete with pots, pans, utensils, and other kitchenware, and a large cooler for the camping food. And two pack-away camping chairs with matching table. Maybe Daddy will let me camp-out tonight."

"I'm sure he will, if it'll make you happy, Angelfish. I rather like camping as well. It's a great way to connect with nature and not deal with life's greatest problems, even if it's just for one night."

"One night for what?"

"Daddy, can we camp-out tonight? I have everything. Remember when I told you about my two friends, Harmony and Melody? Well, last year, they gave me a whole complete camping set. Please? Mommy wouldn't let me last year. In fact, she never let me go camping, ever. She thought I'd get mauled by a bear or something like that. Poison Ivy, Poison Oak, ticks, the list went on as to why I couldn't camp-out. And I wanted to camp-out in the backyard, twenty feet from the house. Ridiculous, really. Please, Daddy?"

"Alright, but not alone. It really is dangerous right now. Death Eaters are still out there. I'll camp with you."

"What about you, Uncle Siri?"

"I got fur. Sure."

"Fur?"

"His animagus form is a big black dog. His fur should keep him warm."

"Well, we'll bring a blanket out to cover him, too. Thank you, Daddy. Thank you, Uncle Sirius."

Remus and Sirius were both smiling, excited to Lullaby so happy, especially since her mother's death was only three weeks ago. Remus had received many letters from Lullaby, complaining about the over-done parties Lizzie gave her every year.

That's the reason Remus had planned the day out the way he did. He knew that his daughter loved animals and nature. But he also knew that she craved a small, quiet affair. His plans included everything she wanted for a simple birthday.

'_Too bad Lizzie is missing this birthday. She didn't listen whenever our child expressed her wishes. Oh, Lizzie, I miss you.'_

When Lullaby pinched his nose, Remus came back to the present, shaking his head, unaware that he had zoned out.

"Welcome back, Moony."

"What do you mean, Padfoots?"

"Daddy, you zoned out on us. I was trying to get your attention for two minutes. I have an idea."

"And what, pray tell, is that?"

"So Uncle Siri doesn't have to be walking around like as dog all day, why don't you put a glamour charm on him to change his appearance? Plus, we don't have a collar or leash."

Sirius slapped his head. _'Why didn't I think of that?'_

"A glamour. Of course. I completely forgot about that option. Thanks for reminding us, Lulls."

"That might help conversations better, not to mention that the zoo won't appreciate us bring a dog in with us."

After altering Sirius' appearance, they left the house to begin the day. Looking at her 'Uncle Siri', Lullaby noticed how much that glamour did and didn't change him.

Sure, his black hair was now the color of wet sand, straight instead of wavy, and rested at the top of his shoulders, when it had been down near his elbows, his skin was a whole three shades darker, miking him look tan, and his eyes were a light sky-blue instead of the normal deep blue-nearly black that they were only minutes ago.

His nose was stronger, but not much, and his chin and cheekbones were less pronounced. He had been brought up an extra four inches, making him stand at six-foot-five. His shoulders weren't as sharp as earlier, but if you knew what to look for, you knew it was Sirius Black.

After twenty minutes of walking, the trio arrived at the edge of town, just as the bus was arriving at the bus stop. After paying, Lullaby lead them to the upper level, explaining that the view was better, and that not very many people actually ride on the top level unless there's no room on the lower part.

"So, it's off to the zoo, huh? Are you excited, Angelfish?"

"Sure am, Uncle Siri. Every time I went to the zoo, it was for either a school report or a class field trip. Never just to enjoy it. Mommy worked most of the time, so we almost didn't see each other unless it was in the evening, or on the weekend. And the weekends were out since they were reserved for trips to the mall and the spa."

"Well, it's a good thing you're excited about it on your birthday. I forgot to mention but Arthur sent an owl late last night, around midnight. He won't be able to come over, but explained that Molly would like to meet Lullaby, and invited us over tonight for dinner. There's an upside and a downside to this new plan."

"And what's that, Moony?"

"Charlie, Bill, and Percy are home for the week. To attend the Quidditch World Cup. Lullaby will get to meet the people she'll be staying with during the full moon. That's the good part."

"So, what's the bad part, daddy?"

"Molly and Arthur have seven kids, six boys and one girl. And you told me in your letters that one reason you wanted a small party every year was because you have anxiety attacks in crowded places."

"We need to stop at home so I can take my medications, anyway. One of which is my Valium. Prescribed for my anxiety attacks."

"How many meds are you on, Angelfish?"

"Let's see. Um, only three different meds. Valium for anxiety, Trazodone for depression, and Valerian for insomnia. I have anxiety attacks in large crowds. I had mild depression for the past five years but I needed a prescription because my depression got worse the night Mommy died. And I've had trouble sleeping for the past three years, since I started school at Winterland."

Lullaby then turned her attention to the buildings and people the bus was passing. _'Sometimes I wonder why I have so many clinical mental problems. Sure, I was always anxious, and my depression started when Gram-Gram and Papa-bear died, and got worse when Mommy died, but my insomnia and sleep problems started my first week at Winterland, when I was eleven.'_

Lullaby was brought out of her thoughts by Sirius gently shaking her shoulder and Remus talking to her.

"Baby, we're at the zoo. Come on, before the bus takes off with us still on."

"I'm coming, Daddy."

Getting off the bus, Lullaby realized that they couldn't call Sirius 'Sirius', otherwise he'd get busted. After she pointed this conundrum out, Sirius went a little pale. Leaning in, he whispered into her ear.

"Angelfish, I do believe you're right. So, what should my name be while I'm like this?"

"How about Sidney? But call you Sid for short?"

"Sounds great, but why 'Sidney'?"

"Sirius is the name of star and Sidney Omarr was an astrologer. And your last name could be Malkovich."

"What are you two whispering about?"

"Daddy, meet Uncle Sidney Malkovich. Since Sirius Black is a wanted man, he needs a new name to go with his appearance. And since Mommy was a muggle-born witch, having a brother who is a muggle shouldn't be a problem. And since the only people who would've known Mommy's family background are either dead or standing right here, no one would be any wiser to it."

Silence meet Lullaby as both Remus and Sirius looked at one another and thought it over. Suddenly, Sirius/Sidney smiled, and Remus voiced his opinion.

"You just thought that all out in less than the two minutes since we got off the bus? You're a genius, Lulls. Bloody brilliant, to be perfectly honest. What do you think, Sidney?"

"I can almost bet that she'll either be in Slytherin or Gryffindor. She's too smart, cunning, and brave for her own good."

Remus nodded his agreement, until Lullaby got impatient with their lack of moving.

"So, Daddy, Uncle Sid, are we going to stand here all day or are we going to the zoo?"

That got the guys' attention. The three of them walked five blocks before they got to the zoo.

Sirius watched Lullaby with complete fascination, seeing her eyes light up when she found the tigers, lions, and monkeys, and then shiver slightly when she located every snake in the reptile house.

When they had seen every animal at the zoo, Remus suggested going to the souvenir shop, where he got Lullaby two stuffed animals: a lion and a snake, and a tiger poster, as well as a light pink monkey t-shirt.

When they had just entered the park that they were going to have lunch at, it started raining, much to Remus' dismay. Sirius and Lullaby, however, started running, enjoying the feel of the rain on their skin. Occasionally turning back to face Remus, who took refuge under a large tree. _'I don't need the sun to make my day better. But by the look on Daddy's face, he does.'_ Smiling, Lullaby called for her Uncle 'Sid' and they ran back to where Remus had decided to stay dry, for the most part, anyway.

"Hey, Moony, I know you wanted the fountain, but there is a nice gazebo over there. Sure, it's on the other side of the park, but it's still nice."

"Yeah, Daddy. Otherwise, we can just head straight to the Royal Botanic Gardens or even home, if you want."

"Gazebo sounds terrific. Let's go."

During lunch at the gazebo, Remus couldn't help but watch as his daughter and his friend bonded. It was amazing how, in only a few hours, attached Lullaby had become to Sirius. Especially after their hesitance the night before.

Sirius was telling another one of his 'Marauder Stories', which managed to get Lullaby to laugh, behaving almost as if nothing was wrong and nothing bad had happened recently.

Being an only child had left Lullaby to entertain herself while she was alone, whether by reading, playing her instruments, doing craft projects, or working in her garden. From what Remus could understand from the letters, Lullaby played the piano, the flute, the clarinet, and the bass, acoustic, and electric guitars, as well as having an amazing singing voice.

Lizzie wrote him letters, telling him all about the things the Lullaby was involved in: Ballet at age two, Martial Arts at age four, Gymnastics at age six, Figure-Skating at age eight, Swim Team at age ten, and, upon entering Winterland, joined her House Cheer Squad and Dance Squad at age eleven, becoming captain of both at age twelve, as well as being put on her House Quidditch team as Seeker during her first year. Every competition she was in, she won, simply because of her determination to practice whenever and wherever possible.

He knew this only because she brought her boxes of her many gold trophies and medals, awards, and tiaras and keepsake programs from her ballet recitals, as well as the pictures that proved her victories. Never had she gotten anything less than first place and had never been anything other than the star of every ballet performance.

'_I truly feel sorry for the person who challenges her to any competition.'_

Remus received copies of Lullaby's report cards, showing that she received nothing but the highest grade of 'Outstanding' in every class since starting at Winterland. Even her muggle grade school report cards showed nothing but straight A's. It simply amazed Remus that his daughter could be so determined to excel in life and go farther than people expected her to.

'_Hermione Granger is going to have a bit of competition from now on. And not only her, but Harry, as well. This should be interesting to watch.'_

When the group was done eating, they packed everything up and headed over to the Royal Botanic Gardens, which was the one thing that Lullaby would never be able to turn down. Remus and Sirius had both figured out that gardens and libraries were just two of her favorite places to be.

"Hey, Remus, where are _you_ going?"

"Huh?"

"Well, Lulls and I just stopped at the gates to the Gardens, and you kept walking."

"Oh, are you serious?"

"Always am, aren't I?"

"I meant, 'Are you kidding me?'"

"Nope, sorry."

Sighing, Remus retraced his steps until he was in line with his daughter and friend, waiting for the workers' lunch break to be over. It really wasn't the best thing to stand around in the rain. To Remus, anyway. Sirius was tilting his head back, trying to catch the raindrops in his mouth and Lullaby was humming to herself, practicing her steps for her next ballet performance, should she have one.

Finally, after having to wait nearly twenty minutes, the group of three was able to get into the large Garden. Lullaby, who had been happy about everything they did so far, was practically exploding with excitement the moment her eyes landed on the many buildings that each had the different types of plants that Remus had no doubt that his daughter knew almost everything about, if not all of the information.

'_Poor Neville. His best subject is Herbology. He'll have competition there now. Wouldn't put it past my daughter to have read every book in the world at least once.'_

Lullaby and Sirius had pulled ahead, with Lullaby identifying each plant before taking a picture with her digital camera, then pouring information out by the mile, and listing things about them, like the most common location to find them, the best type of environment for them to grow, and tiny details like that. Remus couldn't help but smile as he watched his little girl explain the importance of plant life, her eyes full of passion, and her face flushed with excitement.

'_She's a professor in the making. I can see it now. No class will be boring with her enthusiasm.'_

Sirius looked back and saw that Remus was watching them interact. He knew that his friend was proud of his daughter for her many achievements from the early stages of infancy.

"Uncle Sid, are you listening to me?"

Turning his attention back to Lullaby, Sirius noticed that she looked a little agitated that her lesson on the muggle plants was being ignored, making his thoughts identical to Remus' about her possibly becoming a professor.

"Sorry, Angelfish. Your dad is so far back there, I don't think he can hear you. Let's wait a couple of minutes, huh?"

Lullaby looked and saw that Sirius was right.

"Daddy, hurry up. We've only been here for thirty minutes and we've just begun. Now, get a move on."

Remus saluted his daughter before picking up his pace a bit, knowing that Lullaby was not patient when it came to her plants.

After nearly two more hours, the three of them left the Gardens, with pictures on camera, and a big smile on Lullaby's face. To her, it truly was a perfect birthday.

On their way back to the bus stop, they made a small detour and stopped at the bakery for Lullaby's cake. After looking over every cake, Lullaby made her decision: an eleven-by-thirteen inch pink champagne cake, with white frosting, pink and purple sugar roses around the edges, and _'HAPPY 14__TH__ BIRTHDAY, LULLABY!' _written in purple. Remus had decided to go with the number candles '1' and '4' instead of fourteen little stick candles.

The group got on the bus a short time later, finally heading home. Remus had the cake on his lap, while Lullaby was leaning her head on Sirius' shoulder, going through her pictures she took at the Gardens. Sirius had the zoo souvenir bag on his lap.

"Uncle Sirius, Daddy, thank you for a wonderful birthday. I really enjoyed it. Rain or shine, it was small, simple, and what I've wanted for years. Thank you, both of you."

"It was no problem, baby. You told me about it so many time in you letters, I'd be a fool not to give you the party you wanted."

"And we had fun, too, Angelfish. Seeing your happy smile and hearing your musical laughter was worth the rain. And your make-up didn't even get ruined."

"That's because it's all water-proof, Uncle Siri."

"That's smart. Otherwise, you'd look like a raccoon by now."

"Oh, you. Hush."

The bus stopped at the edge of town and the trio got off and headed back home, not only for Lullaby's medications, but also because they needed to get over to the Burrow so the Weasley's could meet Lullaby Dream Lupin.

Lullaby had already decided that, since Arthur said that Molly insisted on them staying over for dinner, she would bring the cake with them, as dessert. After all, her mother did raise her to be kind and courteous, no matter what.

They arrived at the house, Lullaby took her medications and fixed her hair quick, and then they did side-along apparition to the Burrow.


	4. The Big Meeting At The Burrow

Lullaby landed on her feet momentarily in the middle of field before promptly collapsing to her knees, while her father and Uncle 'Sid' remained standing right beside her.

"That was, by far, the worst way I've ever traveled! Honestly, the Floo Network is better. Not by much, but still better."

Remus tried, and failed, to hide his smile of amusement, while Sirius boomed out with laughter.

"I actually have to agree with you, Angelfish. I much prefer brooms, though."

"Same here, Uncle Sid. So, where to now, Daddy?"

"Over that hill, is the Burrow. Just stick close to either Sid or myself. I don't want you getting lost tonight."

"Okay. Let's go."

"Wait! If I'm supposed to be a muggle, how did I get here?"

Remus looked confused, while Lullaby smiled. In less then a minute, she answered.

"Simple. You're my mother's brother, and since she is a muggle-born witch, and I'm a half-blood witch, you know a lot about the wizarding world, if not from hearing me and mom talking about it, then reading about it in my books."

Remus and Sirius' jaws both dropped at the brilliant background story, and the fact that it took her less than a minute to come up with an answer stunned them into silence.

"How do you come up with these answers and solutions so fast, Lulls?"

"Uncle Sid, I'm the brightest witch of my age at Winterland. My mind doesn't know how think slow."

"Yeah, we noticed, baby. It's still surprises me that you're actually my daughter. Me and Lizzie were both smart, in the top ten of our year, but you're in the top three, if not the very top spot."

"Thank you, Daddy. It's a gift. What can I say? Now, let's get a move on, otherwise we might as well go home."

"And miss out on hanging out with the Weasley's? I think not, Lullaby."

And on that note, Lullaby turned and marched through the field and up the hill, with Remus and Sirius behind her. Once they all reached the top of the hill, they saw the Burrow, with three red-headed figures setting up a couple of tables and some chairs in the middle of the garden.

As they approached the house, a tall red-haired man walked out the door, heading towards the oncoming group.

"Remus! It's about time you showed up. Molly's in a right state, and you're only twenty minutes late."

"Hello, Arthur. Yeah, we had to stop back at the house quick to drop somethings off, and pick some things up. Oh, and this is my daughter, Lullaby. Lulls, this is Arthur Weasley."

Lullaby was silent during the exchange, reading the man's body language, then put her hand forward after deciding that he was alright. Very few people knew that Lullaby read people before deciding if they were friendly or not.

"It's nice to meet you, Mr. Weasley, sir."

Arthur shook her hand before replying.

"Charmed to meet you as well, Lullaby. And, please, call me Arthur. And, now, who is this gentleman?"

"Oh, this is my Uncle Sidney. My mother's muggle brother."

"Nice to meet you, Sidney. Muggle, eh?"

"Yeah. It's great to meet you as well, sir. I've never missed one of Lullaby's birthdays, and I wasn't gonna start now."

"Arthur Weasley! Are you holding some people up over there?"

"Here, let's go inside. Molly'll start blowing things up if she gets any more upset."

With Arthur leading the way, the group entered the kitchen, where, sure enough, Molly had a tea kettle of water in her hand, hot and ready to blow.

"Good evening, Molly. Sorry we're late."

"Oh, finally, you're here. I was afraid something had happened to you, Remus. And this must be Lullaby, correct?"

"That is correct, Mrs. Weasley, ma'am. It's a pleasure to meet you. Thank you for having us over this evening."

"Just Molly, dear. And it's absolutely no problem. Remus, she's a gem, so polite and courteous, unlike most of my children. Simply gorgeous, too. And you are, sir?"

"I'm Sidney Malkovich, Lullaby's Uncle on her mother's side, and a muggle, ma'am."

"You're sister was a muggle-born witch, I take it, then?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Well, we're glad to have you join us."

"Um, Molly, I hope you don't mind, but I brought a cake for dessert tonight."

"That's very kind of you, dear. Any particular reason for a cake, child?"

"I turned fourteen today."

"Well, happy birthday then, dear."

"Thank you."

About ten seconds later, the three boys from the garden came into the house. The one in front stopped when he noticed Remus standing there, causing the other two to collide into him, all three of them tumbling to the floor. Molly immediately went into her drill sergent mode.

"Percy, Bill, Charlie, we have guests. Stand up and meet them. I'm sorry about that, Remus."

"Sorry, Mum. I wasn't expecting Professor Lupin to be here."

Percy, the one in the front, had just graduated nearly two months before. Seeing a Professor in his house shocked him a bit. Bill and Charlie, on the other hand, were all smiles.

"Now, boys, this is Remus Lupin."

Remus shook hands with all three boys.

"And this is his daughter, Lullaby Lupin."

The boys all turned to looked at her, and froze when they did. It surprised them that such a stunningly beautiful girl could ever turn up in their kitchen. And one by one, they shook hands with her, Percy being the last. Leaning his head down, he kissed her knuckles, causing her to pull her hand back into her chest.

Everyone in the room looked at Lullaby, and before Molly could scold her son, Lullaby spoke up.

"It's okay, Molly. Daddy, do you have my hand sanitizer?"

"Uh, sure do. Here you go, Lulls."

"Thank you. It's quite all right, Molly. It's just that I'm a germophobe. And, to me mouth germ are the worst. It's nothing personal, Percy. I didn't mean to shock you or anything."

"It's okay. I understand. Anyway, I got to go wash up. I'll see you later."

And with that, the three boys left the room and went up stairs, to their bedrooms to change then to the bathroom to wash up for the evening. After moment, molly offered everyone tea, which only Lullaby declined.

"So, you're transferring from Winterland Academy, I hear. What's it like there?"

"Arthur, contrary to popular belief, not all magic schools require uniforms. As long as the body is reasonably covered, each person is free to express their individuality, to a certain extent. As long as super tiny low-cut belly shirts, overly short mini skirts, and thigh-high leather hooker boots stay out of the school, it's all fine and dandy. I've always abided by the rules on clothing. I'm a regular prime and proper Miss Priss at Winter-"

Just then, a shriek from upstairs sounded before the thunder of people running down into the kitchen. As soon as two young red-heads, a brunette, and a raven-haired boy were safely hiding behind Molly, two more red-headed boys joined the party.

"FRED! GEORGE! What is the meaning of this!"

Two deep gulps before one of the boys spoke up.

"It was only a small prank, Mum. Completely harmless."

"Harmless? Ha! Only if you call releasing a jar of bee, wasps, and hornets in a room full of people harmless."

"They did what!? Can one of you explain to me what happened up there, and in who's room?"

The red-hair girl walked forward and told her side of the story first: that her and Hermione were in Ron's room, doing each others' hair, and talking with the guys, while they were playing Wizard's Chess. The door creaked open and in under a minute, the room was swarming with insects. Luckily, no one was stung.

When the girl was done, Molly ordered everyone, that had either had the prank pulled on them or the culprits behind the prank, to sit down.

When she spoke again after a minute, it was in an chillingly low, menacing tone, one that even had Remus shaking in fear.

"I will only say this one more time: if you all can't control yourselves, then none of you will attend the World means no more pranks or experiments. No more fighting over who's right or wrong. You will get along, or none of you will be leaving this house until September first. Am I understood?"

Six murmurs of 'yes, ma'am' and 'understood perfectly clear' were heard before Arthur cleared his throat. The six at the table turned to face Arthur before he continued what he wanted to do.

"I'm sure you all know Remus Lupin, correct?"

Six silent nods.

"Well, this young lady here is Remus' daughter, Lullaby."

"It's a pleasure to meet you all."

Fred and George turned to face each other then back at Lullaby, both thinking the same thing: _'Oh, man! She's hot!'_

Arthur then continued by introducing Sirius.

"And this is Sidney Malkovich, Lullaby's Uncle on her mother's side of the family."

Sirius nodded his head to the group at the table before Molly's voice rang out calmly.

"Why don't you all introduce yourselves? My children first. Less confusing that way."

The ginger-haired girl stood up first, hand extended.

"I'm Ginerva, or Ginny, Weasley. Great to meet you. I'll be in third year this year."

"Good evening, Ginny. It's nice to meet you, too."

Then the first ginger boy to enter the room stood up and clumsily walked over, his arm out for her to shake.

"I'm Ronald Weasley. Call me Ron, though, if you don't mind. I'm a fourth year. Nice to meet you, by the way."

"And nice to meet you as well, Ron."

The twins stood up at the same time.

"I'm Fred Weasley and this is-"

"George Weasley. We're sixth years."

"It's a pleasure-"

"-to meet you."

Lullaby looked startled for a moment before regaining her composure.

"Lovely to meet the both of you."

Then, when the twins sat down, the brunette girl practically jumped out of her seat with excitement before rushing forward, nearly scaring Lullaby behind her father.

"Hello, my name is Hermione Jean Granger. I'm a fourth year, in Gryffindor, and the brightest witch of my age at Hogwarts. It's truly splendid to meet you."

Lullaby, in fear, shook Hermione's hand.

"Nice to meet you as well, Hermione."

And then the moment everyone was waiting for: to see if the new girl was the type to go crazy over a famous scar.

"Good evening. I'm Harry James Potter. A fourth year Gryffindor. An honor to meet you, Miss Lupin."

Lullaby shook Harry's hand before she spoke.

"An honor to meet you as well, Harry. Everyone, my name is Lullaby Dream Lupin. I'm a fourth year student transferring to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from Winterland Academy of Magic in the United States. It's a real treat that we're starting off so well, seeing as how I wouldn't know anyone else at Hogwarts."

Just then, a beautiful, glossy, black owl flew in through the open window, carrying a Howler, heading straight toward Lullaby, who stretched out her arm for the owl to land. Everyone in the room looked at the Howler, a terrified look in their eyes.

"Well, hello, Midnight. Brought me some mail, did you? Gosh, I'm gonna miss seeing you every day. And Ginger-Lynn, too."

"Uh, Miss Lupin?"

"Yes, Harry?"

"You might wanna open your Howler."

"It's fine. It's completely harmless. Trust me."

At that moment, the other three Weasley boys entered the kitchen, and the Howler exploded, along with two beautiful voices singing.

"_Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday, Dear Lullaby. Happy Birthday to you!"_

"Hey, Lullaby! It's Melody. Just wanted to wish you a Happy Birthday, since we couldn't be there with you this year."

"Happy Birthday, Lulls! It's Harmony. Congrats on turning fourteen. We miss you so much. Write back to us soon."

"_Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday to you. Happy Birthday, Dear Lullaby. Happy Birthday to you!"_

When the Howler finished its message and tore itself up, Lullaby sank to her knees, tears rolling down her cheeks, shoulders shaking every five seconds. The whole kitchen was silent, save for Lullaby's sobs. Then, after about five minutes, Lullaby wiped away her tears, careful of her make-up, then got to her feet.

"I'm sorry. I'm going through a bit of a rough spot at the moment. Harmony and Melody. I wanna go back to Winterland. My two best friends are there. Twin sisters, half-bloods, like I am. We grew up only a block apart. Lullaby Dream, Harmony Bliss, and Melody Nirvana."

Harry was the first to speak.

"They were singing Happy Birthday. Is today your birthday?"

Lullaby nodded.

"Indeed, it is, Harry."

"Mine was yesterday."

At this, Lullaby snapped her head up to look at Harry intently, putting two and two together.

"Were your parents names James and Lily Potter, by any chance, Harry?"

Harry stumbled back before catching his footing.

"Uh, yes. Why do you ask?"

Remus stepped in before Lullaby could answer.

"Hey, Molly, if you don't mind, could I talk to Harry privately?"

"Oh, certainly. Okay, everyone. Outside. Chop, chop. Don't dawdle, now."

When every one had left the room, except for Sirius, Remus, Lullaby, and Harry, of course, Remus pulled out two chairs, side by side, for Harry and Lullaby to sit in, while Sirius sat on the opposite side of the table, waiting for Remus.

"Okay, Professor Lupin, what is-"

"It's Remus, Harry. Since I'm not teaching at Hogwarts, or any other school, it's no longer Professor."

"Right. Sorry, it's a habit. What is going on here? I'm confused beyond all sense and reason."

At this, Remus sighed an put up a silencing charm around the room. Then he took a deep breath before looking at his Lullaby and Harry.

"I'm not sure if your mother told you anything, Lulls, but I know that Harry doesn't know."

"I don't know what? Is there another secret in my life?"

Cringing, Remus sighed again before continuing.

"As I was saying. My late wife, Elizabeth Malkovich Lupin, and your mother, Lily, were the best of friends, starting toward the end of our fifth year. James married Lily a few months before I married Lizzie one and a half years after graduation. Lizzie and I got pregnant that sometime during that first week of marriage."

Silence while Remus took a drink of his tea.

"When Lily and Lizzie were both eight months pregnant, they found out what they were having: Lily, a boy, and Lizzie, a girl, both of them due less than a week apart. Of course, the moment James found out what the genders were, he proposed the idea of an arranged marriage."

At that, Harry made to say something, but was silenced by Remus raising his hand and Lullaby lightly stomping on his foot.

"I know what you're going to say, Harry, but do listen to the whole story, will you?"

Harry closed his mouth and nodded.

"Good. Anyway, Lizzie and Lily both loved the idea, as it meant they would become family, officially, and wouldn't drift apart, and the same for the marauders. I was hesitant for the first couple of days, until they told me the brilliance behind it, and they were hoping that the two of you would go from childhood friends to the cute teen couple to the unwavering lovers they thought you would become. Eventually, they got me to agree."

Remus paused to take another drink of his tea, then pressed on with his tale, if one could call it that.

"And according to the contract that the four of us had signed, the two of you have to be married by the time the youngest turns twenty-one, otherwise you'll both be cursed to live a long, lonely life. Can't marry anyone else, can't sleep with anyone else, nothing. Not even one nighters."

Silence rang strongly throughout the room as Harry and Lullaby looked at each other, then at Remus, then back to each other, shock evident on their faces.

Harry broke the silence first.

"So, you mean to say I'm going to be your son-in-law?"

"If you do decide to marry. The contract doesn't say you have to marry, just that you can't be with anyone but each other."

Harry stayed quiet, thinking about his options, while Lullaby took her turn, panic evident in her voice.

"Daddy, isn't this supposed to be old magic? I mean, it shouldn't still be in circulation today. How do you know that the contract is still in commission?"

Now, Lullaby was a smart witch, but she was trying anything to believe that this was a dream.

"Lullaby, it's old magic, yes, but like a fine wine, it gets better and stronger with age. And magical binding contracts like these never expire and can't be destroyed, not even by the one's who signed it."

Harry looked at Lullaby out of the corner of his eye, at the same moment she did the same towards him, their thoughts exactly the same, but not spoken out loud: _'If we get married, I'll be just fine with this. He/She is simply way too gorgeous.'_ They turned back to Remus when he cleared his throat.

"Lullaby, you can give your opinion to your Uncle Sidney, and Harry, you can give me yours."

Both teen were reluctant to budge, but they did when Remus growled low in his throat, Lullaby moving faster.

Lullaby reach Sirius quickly, bending down and whispering into his ear.

"I may act like I'm putting up a fight, but I approve of this."

Sirius nodded his head, smiling internally.

When Lullaby headed back to her seat, Harry had just reach Remus' side. He, too, whispered into the ear.

"Remus, sir, it's a shock, yes, but I actually approve of this situation. As forced as it was a month before our birth, I agree to this arrangement."

Remus put a straight face on while he nodded, smiling and jumping for joy on the inside.

"If you two will sit tight for a moment, Sidney and I need to swap your answers."

And with that, Remus and Sirius walked through the kitchen door and into the living room, making sure to put up a silencing charm.

"So, Lullaby approves, Remus, she just wants to put up a stubborn front for a bit. She'll be all cutesy in less than a day, you'll see. Now, how about Harry?"

Remus bit his bottom lip gently.

"Well, I'm going to have a son-in-law."

"What!? Are you telling me the honest truth? Harry actually agrees to this whole situation?"

"Yeah, he does. I kinda knew he would, though. You and I are the last links to his parents, he's been starved of love in any way, shape, or form, and Lullaby has so much of it to give."

"So, let's go break the news, then, shall we?"

"Yeah, but follow my lead. Look like your in a blue mood. Then smile when I tell them. It'll totally through them off."

"Gotcha, let's go."

And after taking down the living room silencing charm, the pair re-entered the kitchen, looking like someone just ran over their favorite pet.

"Well, what's the verdict?"

"You really wanna know?"

Both, Harry and Lullaby, nodded their heads.


	5. The New Couple

"_Well, what's the verdict?"_

"_You really wanna know?"_

_Both, Harry and Lullaby, nodded their heads._

Taking a deep breath, Remus prepared himself for the inevitable shouting.

"Well, shockingly, you both have agreed to the contract, situation, arrangement, or whatever you wanna call it."

Harry dropped his jaw. Lullaby stopped breathing. When the words were finally processed, they came back to their senses, one closing his mouth, the other gasping for much needed air.

They turned to look at each other and smiled brightly, but nervously at the same time.

"So, Daddy, what do we do from now on?"

"Nothing farther than light kisses, hugs, holding hands, and an sufficient amount of cuddling. Now, go hang out, talk, whatever it is that teens do these days."

And with that, Remus removed the silencing charm in the kitchen before walking outside. Sirius stayed behind for a brief second, then decided to follow Remus' example and give the two teens some privacy.

"Well, Molly'll have a field day when she find out that this is all because of an arranged marriage. The guys will blow up at me for getting you. Ginny hate you for a little while for stealing me, and no, we never have dated, and never will. And then, of course, Hermione'll give us separate 'treat him right' and 'treat her right' lectures."

"Are they really that bad about it?"

"Molly is like a wolf: gets ferocious if you mess with her or her pack. And do pardon the pun. The guys aren't called hot heads just because of their hair. Hermione actually reads the fine, fine, fine print of the rules and regulations manuals to life, school, and just about everything else that's readable. Ginny's been obsessed with me for two years now. It's scary how determined she is."

Lullaby's shoulder slumped after hearing all that.

"Man, it's worse than I figured. I hope they don't put too much pressure on me. Come on, let's go give them the news."

Hand in hand, the two left the kitchen, heading toward the garden, where they would be eating tonight. The first person to set eyes on them was none other than Ginny Weasley, who _SHRIEKED_ at the top of her lungs when she noticed that they were holding hands. Ginny managed to get everyone's attention before they looked to see what caused such a reaction.

Upon setting their eyes on the new couple, who started whispering into each other's ear as though Ginny didn't cause such a distraction, Ron, Fred, George, and, Percy, surprisingly, all sent glares of envy, hate, injustice, and betrayal. Bill and Charlie just looked up from the table, smiled, waved, then went back to their game of Exploding Snap. Hermione nearly dropped the book she had been reading. Molly just glanced at them, smiling a knowing smile, and Arthur was the first to approach them, offering them congratulations.

After nearly ten minutes of people asking them how them getting together happened so fast, Remus and 'Sidney' showed up, each carrying a basket of fresh, ripe, red apples. Lullaby had never been so grateful for a distraction.

Within minutes, Molly announced supper, and the Weasley boys ran straight to the table. Letting out a breath he didn't realize he was holding, Harry turned to look at Lullaby, who also turned to face him.

"Well, it wasn't as bad as you predicted, Harry. Well, except for Ginny's shriek. It could've been avoided if she didn't notice until after dinner. Speaking of dinner. Hey, Daddy!"

Remus looked up from where he was setting the table.

"Yes, princess?"

"Did you bring my dinner meds? I didn't grab them."

Remus was digging through his pockets, only to come up empty-handed.

"Sorry, sweetie. I don't have them either."

"Okay. How about you, Uncle Sid?"

"What?"

"Did you grab my dinner meds?"

Sirius searched the pockets of his jacket.

"Um, oh, here they are."

Lullaby exhaled deeply. _'Thank Merlin!'_

Lullaby and Harry walked over to the table and sat down next to each other, with Remus and Sirius sitting directly across from them. Sirius cleared his throat before speaking.

"Angelfish, I thought you said that you were only on three medications."

"I am, but they're for what I told you they were. My Ranitidine is for my Acid Reflux."

At this, everyone looked up at Lullaby, confusion written across their foreheads. Molly was the first to speak.

"So, you're on four different medications? What on Earth for?"

Lullaby inhaled deeply, her head down, before looking at Molly to give her the answer.

"Ranitidine is for my Acid Reflux. Valium for my anxiety. Trazodone for my depression. And Valerian for my insomnia and sleep problems."

There was silence for nearly a minute, then…

"Why do you need all those medications, dear?"

"I always have anxiety attacks when under pressure, in the middle of a large crowd, and I also have separation anxiety. That's why I have the Valium. When I started at Winterland three years ago, thanks to the separation anxiety, I started having problems sleeping. I woke up six or seven times a night or just couldn't sleep at all. So, I was put on Valerian. And five years ago, my mother's parents, Gram-Gram and Papa-Bear, died and I had developed mild state of depression, but I didn't require any meds for it until three weeks ago when my mother died in the hospital during surgery after a car accident. My depression went sky-high, so I was given Trazodone to help."

As she finished, Lullaby was met with absolute silence.

"I only require the Ranitidine at meal times. It's for my digestive system. The other meds are needed everyday for my clinical mental health problems. It's completely fine by me. I'm so used to taking them, I'd probably have a panic attack if I stopped cold turkey."

Harry reached over and grabbed her hand that was resting on the table, running his thumb over her knuckles comfortingly, silently letting her know that he was there for her when she needed him, no matter what the problem.

Lullaby lightly squeezed his hand before quickly excusing herself, tears burning her eyes, and heading into the house to have a crying moment in the bathroom.

The moment she entered the house, Remus and Sirius sighed together. Remus was the one to explain the ordeal.

"My late wife, Lizzie, was on her way home from work one night, three weeks ago, when a logging truck collided with her vehicle. The driver had been heavily intoxicated. Lizzie was in surgery for between six and eight hours. She died while the doctors tried to save her. Lullaby took the news the hardest."

Harry stood up and excused himself, walking to the house, determined to give his intended a shoulder to cry on, a warm, understanding embrace, and light, loving kisses on her forehead. He lost both of his parents as a baby and didn't remember them very well. But she had grown up with both of her parents still alive, but only really knowing one of them her whole life. Of course he was sad about his parents, but her pain was greater, and she was on medications to help her deal with it.

Harry arrived at the bathroom and tried the door knob, only to discover it was locked. Knocking lightly, he called for her to open up and let him in.

"Lullaby, it's Harry. Please, let me in. I understand your pain all too well, even though yours is recent. Unlocked the door, and let me in to help."

"No! I don't wanna be seen like this!"

"If you don't talk to someone about it, it'll just eat away at you, and that'll make it hurt worse. You have one parent still with you. I've lost both, and I live with my mother's sister, Petunia, and her husband, Vernon, and her son, Dudley. Because of what my parents were, and what I am, I've been beaten and starved, forced to do the chores, and never received a 'Thank you, Harry' from them. Please, just know that I'm here to listen and be there for you."

And with that, Harry turned to walk away. He only made it three steps when he heard his name.

"Harry, I'm sorry. I'm just too stubborn and determined to be seen as a weak person. Please, come in, if you want."

Silently thanking whomever was listening, Harry entered the bathroom. After he closed and locked the door, Harry turned to see Lullaby sitting on the floor, next to the toilet, a box of Kleenex on her lap, and her eyes red from crying. In less than a second, Harry was on his knees in front of her, arms open in invitation for her, which took Lullaby five second to decide on before throwing herself into his embrace.

Harry pulled her as close as possible without crushing her, rubbing his hand gently over her back, letting her cry until she had calmed down, then she was resting her arms around his neck, her head on his shoulder, while her own shoulders occasionally shook with the _'after-shock'_ sobs. After a few minutes of silence, Lullaby spoke, making Harry jump slightly.

"Thank you, Harry. I'm sorry. I left my diary at home. Normally, I write my feelings out in there. It actually helps me sort through it all."

Lullaby pulled back to look Harry in the eye. A knock at the door made them both jump, and Lullaby squeaked.

"Angelfish, are doing okay in there?"

"Uncle Sid. I'm okay. Been better, been worse. It's just one of those days. I'll be out in a second. Can you ask Daddy to meet me in the kitchen?"

"Okay, Lulls."

And with that, Sirius turned and walked back downstairs and out to the garden to fetch Remus, while Harry and Lullaby stood up and waited a minute before walking out of the room and down the stairs to meet with Remus.

"Remus, Lullaby wants to see you in the kitchen real quick."

Remus nodded, sighed, then excused himself, heading to the door that enters the kitchen. When he got there, he was met with a heart-warming scene: Harry sitting on one of the kitchen chairs, with Lullaby on his lap, his arms wrapped protectively around her, and Lullaby's arms around his neck, while her head rested peacefully on his shoulder. Both of them whispering to each other. He really didn't want to disrupt such a moment, but his daughter had wanted to speak with him.

"I hate to interrupt, but you wanted to see me, sweetie?"

"Yes. Is there anyway for Harry and I to spend more time together before the Quidditch World Cup?"

"Actually, I think there is. I can expand the hide-away bed in the couch to accommodate two people. And no, Harry, you'll be sleeping out in the living room with Sidney. Lullaby hasn't slept outside of my company since her died. But tonight, we're camping out in the backyard at my place. You may going us if you want."

Harry was so shocked that Remus hadn't made them separate from each other, that he didn't fully register the words that were spoken. Or, at least, he didn't until Lullaby pinched his nose shut to bring him back to the present.

"Huh? What?"

"I said that you can come stay over with us anytime you want, and Lullaby wants to know if you feel like accompanying us on our backyard camping trip."

"I've never been camping."

"Nor has Lullaby. Lizzie was working during the week and the only thing they did together on the weekends was shopping and going to the spa. Lullaby actually begged me this morning to let her camp out in the yard tonight. So, what do you say?"

Harry pretended to think about it for a minute before he smiled.

"Sounds awesome. But we should let the others know so they don't start panicking. And by 'they', I mean Molly."

"I concur, Harry. Plus, if Molly were to find out I took you with us without letting her know, she'll castrate me. So, let's go announce the plans."

"Uh, Daddy? Could you help? I don't wanna be seen with blotchy red eyes. I don't like to appear to have been crying."

"Of course, Lulls. Come over here."

When they were done in the kitchen, the trio walked back over to the table and sat in their original seats. And the moment they sat down, Ginny jumped up and started accusing Harry of cheating on her.

"Oh, for the love of Merlin, Ginny. We never dated, we never talked about dating, we were never a couple in any sense of the word except for friends, and not to mention that even if I wasn't with Lullaby, I couldn't be with anyone else because of the contract."

Molly dropped her fork at that.

"What contract?"

Lullaby, Harry, and Remus all groaned, thinking the same thing: 'W_ay to go, bigmouth. Now we got to explain the whole thing. AGAIN!'_After they took a deep breath, Lullaby and Harry both turned their glares onto Remus, who was the only signature on the contract that was still alive.

Remus, knowing that this was his death sentence, inhaled and exhaled, then began repeating the story behind the contract, once again. And when he was done, no one said a word, however, Sirius, Harry, and Lullaby were all nibbling on their dinner rolls, waiting for Molly to begin shouting. They weren't disappointed.

"REMUS LUPIN!!!!! HOW DARE YOU DO SOMETHING AS INCREDIBLY STUPID AS SIGN A CONTRACT THAT BINDS TWO PEOPLE TO ONE ANOTHER INVOLUNTARILY!?!?! THIS HAS TO BE THE MOST IRRESPONSIBLE THING I'VE EVER HEARD ABOUT!!!"

Harry decided that he should step in and rescue poor Remus from Molly's wrath. So, taking a deep breath, he took the plunge.

"Molly, if I may interrupt for just a moment. I actually think it's a good thing. I mean, lullaby and I understand each other very well, and we only met an hour ago. Besides, if you wanna blame anyone for this, it'd be my dad. It was, after all, his idea. Remus was pulled into it a couple of days after it was proposed."

Molly was doing such a fantastic imitation of a fish by the time Harry was done, that everyone was wondering if she needed to be put into a lake or something.

"Oh, sorry, Harry, dear. I just think that this old magic shouldn't be used without every person involved to be aware of all the details."

"Quite alright, Molly, but please don't question what happened in the past. Remus is my link to my parents, and in a way, so is Lullaby. Now, let's eat. Remus and Lullaby invited me to camp-out over at their place tonight, and I'm going, Molly. Don't try to stop me. I made my decision."

And with that, everyone resumed eating their meal, the contract forgotten. Only when they were done eating did Lullaby finally speak up again.

"Molly, ma'am, where might I find the knives in the kitchen?"

"Oh, their hidden from the younger children. Charlie, why don't you show her where they are? Thank you, dearie."

Charlie got up and escorted Lullaby into the kitchen, leading her to a blank wall, or almost blank. There, if you knew what to look for, was the outline of a wall box.

"Clever, clever, Molly. Thank you, Charlie."

Charlie carried out the plates, forks, napkins, and the knife, while Lullaby opened the top of the cake box to put the '1' and the '4' candles on top of the cake. After Lullaby placed the cake on the table, Remus lit the candles and Harry hugged Lullaby from behind just as everyone started singing 'Happy Birthday', way off key, but it was still a nice gesture.

From there, Lullaby began cutting the cake, with Harry still holding on behind her, and gave every person a piece before turning around, holding a piece for Harry to take a bite, wishing him a 'Belated Happy Birthday', and placing a small kiss on his cheek, causing Harry to blush deeply.

When the cake was done and the sun was nearly set, Remus announced that it was time for them to be off. They still had to set up the tent and everything, after all.

After they said 'good night' and 'see you later', Harry left the Burrow with Remus, Sirius, or Sid, and Lullaby, who was holding his hand. As soon as they were on the other side of the hill, Remus had the other three hold on to him before apparating them all back to his home.


	6. Camping Conversations

Upon arriving at home, Remus had to catch Lullaby and Harry both when they started losing their balance. Neither of them were used to that form of travel.

"Lullaby, go get your camping gear. Sidney, scout the area for some fire wood and a good spot to set up camp. Harry, you will help me gather the necessary items, like blankets and pillows."

They all went to do their assigned duties. Within ten minutes, Sirius had an impressive pile of wood for the fire, Harry and Remus had all the blankets and pillows sitting on a hand-made picnic table, and together they were pacing back and forth, waiting for Lullaby to bring out the tent so they could set it up.

Lullaby had gathered all of her camping stuff, but decided to change her outfit before taking it all outside. And the moment she left the house, Remus and Sirius exchanged looks before watching Harry's reaction, which ended up being his jaw, once again, dropping to the ground when he saw her new outfit.

Lullaby was now dressed in camouflage drawstring cargo carpi's, tan and mossy green running shoes, and a tight, short-sleeved, cropped tan t-shirt that said _'NATURE GIRL'_ in bold, mossy green letters. Her hair was now pulled back into a tight french braid, her jewelry and make-up had been removed, and she was carrying a giant bundle, that easily weighed fifty-five pounds, on her back as though it was as light as a feather.

Lullaby hadn't noticed that the guys weren't talking until she was halfway done with setting up the tent. When she looked back over her shoulder, Remus, Harry, and Sirius were watching her intently. And shrugging her shoulders, she continued setting up the tent, then started up the campfire.

"You know, if you're going to keep staring, you might wanna take a picture, since it actually lasts longer."

That unfroze the guys. Harry was the first one to move.

"I thought you said you never went camping before."

"I haven't. When Harmony, Melody, and I were younger, attending the muggle school, we were in Girl Scouts. One of our summer day trips was to the woods. We set up our tents and everything, went on hikes, made lunch on the fire, and sang camp songs and told 'ghost stories' before heading home in the evening. The tents were used for changing and resting. We were usually next to a lake, so swimming, hiking, and having fun were the closest things I've done to camping out."

"Well, I guess that explains it. So, tell me. Are you going the Quidditch World Cup?"

"Actually, I am. Headmaster Dumbledore is giving me his ticket since he has important issues to to straighten out. I actually haven't been to a professional Quidditch game. I'm so ashamed about that."

"Why are you ashamed over it?"

"At Winterland, I was Seeker on my House Quidditch Team, and not once have I missed any of the school games. Not going to a professional game is like saying I'm not a true fan of the sport."

"That's not true. I'm the Seeker in Gryffindor at Hogwarts, and this'll be my first professional game as well."

"Well, at least I'm not alone in this, then, right?"

"Right. Now, let's finish setting up camp. Hey, Remus, bring the blankets and pillows over here for me, please and thank you."

Remus rolled his eyes while handing the blankets to Sirius and picking up the pillows himself before they headed over to the tent. _'It's gonna be a long night if these two keep talking about Quidditch. My brain is already frazzled from hearing her write about it in her letters over the past few years.'_ Opening his eyes and looking at the tent, Remus noticed that Harry and Lullaby were nowhere to be seen. Turning to ask Sirius if he knew where the teens went, Remus was surprised to find his friend also missing. Feeling a slight panic, Remus dropped the pillows and was about to start running into the woods when Lullaby poked her head out of the tent, smiling.

"Are you finally back in the present, Daddy? You had zoned out again. Come inside and see all the room there is."

"I seriously doubt that such a small tent will be very accommodating toward four people, Lull-"

Remus' voice suddenly stopped when he entered the tent. Apparently, he didn't realize that it was a magic tent. Sure, on the outside, it looked big enough for about six people, tops. But, inside, it could easily fit at least twenty five people.

There was even a bathroom, a kitchen and dining area, a giant room for the living area, and two doors that, Remus figured, lead to a couple of bedrooms.

"Remus, you know what I think?"

"No, I don't, Sid. Why don't you tell me? Then, I will know what you think."

"Okay, don't get mad, but I think we should let them sleep in the same room. There's two bedrooms and you and I can take turns checking up on them. Besides, this way they can get to know each other without us eavesdropping on their conversation."

"I'll think about it. And it's not that I don't trust them to behave themselves. It's just that I didn't want to tell them about the contract until they turned seventeen. They're too young to be dealing with this. That's all."

"Relax, Moony. If she's your daughter, she'll deal with it wonderfully. And Harry, well, he's seen and done things that have shocked Dumbledore. Besides, they do have seven years to get to know each other."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. I guess I was hoping my little girl wouldn't have her first boyfriend until her sixth or seventh year. I didn't get to watch her grow up. Lizzie had her for her childhood and I get her for her teenage years. I just hope Lizzie actually gave her the whole 'Sex Talk' and saved me the embarrassment of explaining the 'Birds and the Bees' to a girl. Talking to Harry will be bad enough. I don't need twice the drama of it."

Sirius nodded then looked around the tent, noticing that it was deathly quiet. After point this out to Remus, he began walking to the bedrooms, hoping that the two teens were in there. And when he didn't see them, he turned to face the rest of the tent in steadily rising panic. But before either man could tear apart the tent in search of the 'Boy Who Lived' and Remus' daughter, they heard laughter coming from outside.

Glancing at one another quickly, they headed toward the door of the tent, and sure enough, there, lying on a large sheet, was Lullaby and Harry, gazing at the stars, Harry sharing the tales of his adventures at Hogwarts, while Lullaby gave him a renewed crash course of Astronomy, which was something that didn't thrill Harry too much.

Remus and Sirius stood there at the mouth of the tent, watching the young couple interact with each other. Sirius knew that Remus was crying on the inside, watching his little girl enter her first teen romance with her intended. Remus, on the other hand, had a feeling that Sirius was bursting with happiness internally over the fact that he was witnessing the first thing in Harry's life that hadn't been covered up to protect him and brought a true smile to his face, while at the same time feeling at bit sad that he hadn't found out until recent about the contract.

A loud snorting laugh brought the old friends back to Earth. Turning their attention back to the teens, they discovered that Sirius had only broken her front barrier, because it seemed that Harry had managed to break the dam and get Lullaby to laugh so hard at his previous story, that she went from her angelic tinkling sound to loud and obnoxious pig-like snorts, gasping for much needed breath.

"Oh, Harry. You and your friends really have all the fun at Hogwarts, don't you? Soon, you'll have me to deal with as well."

Harry calmed his laughter down enough to notice that a lock of hair had fallen into Lullaby's face while she had been laughing. Remus and Sirius watched as Harry slowly reached out and gently brushed the hair back behind her ear, smiling happily, before he spoke to her again.

"And what do you mean by that, Lullaby?"

"I'm actually surprised that I wasn't expelled before my first Christmas at Winterland. I pulled so many pranks on the professors and the other students, and must have broken about ten or more rules every day, I thought for sure that I would be expelled. On average, I spent about fifteen nights each month in detention."

"What? Are you serious?"

"Believe it or not, it's true. Honest to God and Merlin. I've even had seventh year students come and ask me for some pointers on how to pull pranks and not get caught.."

Harry shook his head gently, a smile of amusement on his handsome face. He leaned in so he could whisper into Lullaby's ear.

"You remind me of Fred and George. Except for the fact you're not a twin, which can be confusing. You've eluded detention more times than they have, but then again, I think that enjoyed getting caught. Not to mention the fact that you're also a very beautiful young woman."

The moment Harry pulled back, his amused emerald eyes met with Lullaby's mischievous amethyst ones, but only for a few seconds before the two of them burst out laughing.

"You are aware of the fact that I'm not the most beautiful person in the world, right?"

"Of course you are. Who, in this wide world, could possibly compare to your light, delicate skin? Your sleek and straight black hair, with the violet tint? Your innocent pink lips? And your eyes that look so very much like amethyst stones?"

Whispering, Lullaby gave her response.

"You."

Harry sat stunned for a moment before shaking his head. He couldn't believe that the most beautiful girl he ever laid his eyes on thought that he was better-looking than her. Sighing, Harry moved forward and lightly pressed his lips to Lullaby's forehead before speaking in a whisper.

"I'm just a humble being in this world. You have the world at your fingertips, yet you insist it is I that has everything in life. I think our parents did a good thing by pairing us up like this. You're better than I am, in looks and ability, and yet you believe that it's the other way around. We're quite the couple, aren't we?"

"I guess we are, Harry."

The two teens laid back down, in silence, and returned their gazes to the stars so bright above. After what seemed to be an eternity, but was truly only five minutes, Remus cleared his throat gently, making his daughter jump into a standing position, wand out, and ready to fire spells in the direction of any threat, while Harry simply raised himself onto his elbows, a sly smile on his lips, one eyebrow arched toward his hairline, almost asking why Remus hadn't interrupted them sooner.

"Daddy!!! Don't do that! I'm on edge enough as it is without you scaring me half to death!"

Watching as his daughter put her wand away, Remus answered Harry's unspoken question, before asking his daughter a serious one.

"I didn't want to interrupt such a tender, loving exchange. But I must ask you, Lulls, why did you feel the need to raise your wand, when you can't use it outside of school while under the legal age?"

"Daddy, underage magic can't be punished if used in self-defense or the protection of another being. And when you sneak up on someone like that, how was I supposed to react? You could've been one of those Death Eaters I've heard about."

Remus chuckled lightly, clearly amused by his daughter's intelligence level and knowledge of the law.

"You are way too smart for your own good sometimes. But anyway, off to bed, both of you. Sidney has talked me into letting you two share a room. Separate sleeping bags, of course, with a minimum of three feet between you."

"Yes, Daddy."

Lullaby helped Harry into a standing position before they walked to the door of the tent. Lullaby stood on tip-toes, kissing both, her Dad and Uncle Sirius on the cheek.

"Good night, Daddy. Pleasant dreams, Uncle Sid."

Harry said a quick good night before following Lullaby into the tent, waiting in the middle of the living space for her to change and come out so he could do the same. And when she did, his jaw, once again, dropped to the floor.

Lullaby had changed into a pair of way-too-short pajama shorts, with a too-tight, tank top that fell to about an inch above her belly button. Both, the top and bottom, were made of luxurious emerald green velvet and had silver stars and moons scattered over it. Despite the fact that it had Slytherin colors, it looked great on her. In Harry's opinion, anyway.

Clearing her throat, Lullaby told Harry it was his turn to change. Stifling a laugh, she truned to face her Dad, who was watching her with uneasiness in his eyes.

"Daddy, is everything okay?"

"Lullaby, I have one question to ask you: Did your mother explain 'The Birds and The Bees' to you?" _Please, say yes._

"Daddy, no, Mom didn't."

Remus visibly paled.

"She didn't leave it to you, though. You see, my two friends, Melody and Harmony, their mother was the music instructor at Winterland. When Harmony, Melody, and I entered puberty, Auntie Beth took the liberty, but only after checking with Mom that it was okay for her to do so. Mom was relieved, actually, that she didn't have to have such touchy conversation, especially with what happened to her at Hogwarts."

"Oh, right. I forgot how much that might have affected her. Wait. Auntie Beth?"

"Mom's name is Elizabeth, but her friend, Melody and Harmony's mom, her name is Bethany. She prefers to be called Beth, though."

Remus nodded his head in understanding. At that moment, Harry stuck his head out and said that he was decent and that he was going to bed, before ducking back into the bedroom. Lullaby yawned once, then turned back to her Dad, smirking evilly.

"I bet that you have to give Harry 'The Birds and The Bees' speech, don't you? I wanna listen in on it. It should prove most entertaining, indeed. Well, I'm off to bed. Good night, and sweet dreams, to both of you."

"Sleep tight, Angelfish."

"Buenas noches, mi angelito."

Lullaby entered the bedroom to find Harry sitting in his sleeping bag, looking nervous. Still smirking, she leaned down and whispered in his ear.

"Tomorrow is going to be very interesting for you, Harry. By the way, you can relax. I don't bite. Good night, Harry."

Kissing his cheek, Lullaby moved over to her own bed and went to sleep. After nearly ten minutes, Harry was still trying figure out what was going to happen tomorrow.

Meanwhile, out in the living space, Sirius pulled Remus toward the other bedroom, talking softly.

"I'm telling you, Remus. She's going to end up being sorted into Slytherin. If her cunning plans didn't prove it to you, that smirk should've done the trick."

Remus closed his eyes and sighed. While he and Sirius changed into their pajamas, backs facing each other, Remus decided that he should tell his friend about his daughter's achievements.

"Sirius, I got to tell you something. I'm quite terrified about letting her attend Hogwarts."

Sirius nodded his head, motioning for the other man to continue.

"When she was two, she started ballet. She excelled far beyond any other child her age after only two or three practices. Since the age of two, Lullaby has been the star of _every_ ballet performance she's been in."

Inhaling, Remus averted his eyes to a spot on the floor.

"At the age of four, she started martial arts. Once again, excelling far ahead of others the same age. _Every_ competition she entered, she won, not matter the size or age of her opponent. She reached the master's level after only six years."

Taking a breath here, he heard Sirius let out a low whistle.

"Wow. She's a determined little thing, isn't she?"

"Yeah, she is. She joined the gymnastics team at the tender age of six, yet again, excelling and surpassing those that had been doing it for years before she joined. She won _every single_ competition in that field, too. And two years later, she joined the figure skating team at the age of eight."

"And let me guess: Miss Lullaby bested every person on the team and won _each and every single_ competition there, too?"

Nodding his head, Remus looked up at his friend, an amused smile on his features.

"Yes, actually. Like you said, she's determined."

"And what happened at the age of ten? I noticed that she joins something new every two years."

"At age ten, she joined the swim team. Bested everyone there, as well. Most of the older people who were on the team for over five either left the team, or got cut for being spiteful to one of the younger members, the only one to every beat them at their own field. _Every_ competition and race she was entered into, she beat the opposing teams by over fifteen seconds. It didn't matter what stroke, she kicked their butts."

Reaching behind him, Remus grabbed one of the mineral waters that Lullaby insisted that they drink. He took three swallows before continuing.

"When she started at Winterland, she joined the Cheer Squad and the Dance Squad, and well as becoming the Seeker for her House's Quidditch team. In her second year, she was made Captain of the Cheer and Dance Squads. The previous Captains named her their Successor, since they had just graduated. The Houses had Dance and Cheer competitions, _all_ of which, of course, Lullaby's team won. And as Seeker for her house, her team won _every _Quidditch game they played. She hasn't quit any of her activities."

"Is that all of it, Remus?"

Sighing, Remus shook his head slightly.

"Almost. I feel sorry for young Neville Longbottom. His best class is Herbology, and, as you saw today at the gardens, she even excels in that. In fact, she excels in _every _class. Her school marks are as good as Hermione Granger's, if not better. My little Lullaby truly is a force to be reckoned with. As you heard her tell Harry outside, she spent about half of each month in detention during her attendance at Winterland."

Silence.

"Now that's everything, Sirius."

A few more seconds of silence, then another low whistle from Sirius.

"You must be really proud that she's determined to succeed so much in life."

"I am, but she's so competitive, I don't know how she's going to cut it. Draco Malfoy is being bested by a muggle-born by only a smidgen, falling into second. Imagine if he were to become third, and Miss Granger going down to second. That's what I'm worried about, Sirius. Anyway, it's late, we'll talk more in the morning. Good night, Padfoot."

"Yeah. See you in the morning. Good night, Moony."

With that, both men laid down to sleep for the night, unaware that Harry had moved so that he was sitting only an inch away from the wall, listening to everything. _'So, I was correct in thinking that Sidney sounded like Sirius. He is Sirius. Must be a glamour charm. Lullaby's background is impressive. And, oh, dear, Hermione will have a fit if she isn't top of the class. oh, well. I'll worry about it tomorrow, along with whatever Lullaby was going on about just before she went to sleep.'_

And with that, Harry moved back to his bed to get some much needed sleep, half dreading the following day, but also half anticipating the fact that he and his future bride would be spending more time together.


	7. First Full Day Together

The next morning, dawn came, and with it, the feeling of dread that Harry felt the previous night before going to sleep. He was unsettled by the fact that he didn't know what was going to happen today. _What makes her so sure it's going to happen today, anyway? It could be tomorrow, or next week. But, knowing my luck, it'll be today. Well, the sooner, the better._

With that thought, Harry rolled to the side to open his sleeping bag, only to find Lullaby's sleeping bag on top of the zipper side of his. And what makes it really difficult to open the sleeping bag, or even slither out of the top, is the fact that Lullaby's body is only about three inches away from touching Harry's own person.

Sighing, Harry rolled over after realizing that there was no way to get out of the sleeping bag without waking Lullaby and that he had no choice but to wait until she either woke up or rolled back the other way. Closing his eyes, Harry decided to try and get a little more sleep.

Not even five minutes later, Lullaby moaned lightly in her sleep, causing Harry to open his eyes and turn to face her, only to find that she had rolled over so that she faced him completely, and that her face was only two inches away from his own. Blushing, Harry scooted a few inches away and turned to face the other direction.

"You know, we'll be waking up this close every morning when we're married. Start getting used to it now."

Harry jumped, not being prepared for such a close encounter so early in the morning groaned before rolling onto his stomach, turning his face so he was looking at Lullaby, his eyes locking on hers.

"Good morning, Lullaby. Pleasant dreams, I hope?"

"Depends on your point of view. But yes, it is a good morning, isn't it?"

As she said this, Lullaby leaned over and placed a kiss on Harry's cheek, catching the corner of his mouth when he flinched at the sudden motion. When she was backing away, he noticed that she was blushing profusely.

"I'm sorry. Didn't mean to startle you. Should've gone for your forehead. I wouldn't have gotten so close to your mou-"

Harry silenced Lullaby's babbling by lightly pressing his lips directly onto hers. It was clumsy and awkward, with both of them frozen in shock; Lullaby by the whole thing, and Harry by the fact that he had made such a bold move. Amethyst eyes met emerald ones before both sets closed slowly. Less than thirty seconds later, the pair heard the sound of two throats being cleared. Breaking apart, they turned and saw Remus and Sirius, who was still disguised as Sidney, standing in the doorway to the bedroom of the tent, both watching them closely.

Harry could tell that Remus was a bit upset that he had caught Harry kissing his ex-professor's only daughter, while Sirius' eyes were dancing with silent amusement.

"I see you two have begun having a good day. Just don't be going farther than that. Now, come on. If you want, we can sleep out here again tonight, but only if you get up now."

Upon hearing of a possibility of another camp-out, Lullaby push away from Harry and jumped to her feet, only to fall forward due to the fact her feet and legs were still trapped in her sleeping bag. When she was about six inches from the ground, Lullaby closed her eyes, waiting for the crash, but none came. Opening her eyes, she looked around and saw that Harry had used his Seeker reflexes to quickly stop from hitting the ground.

She blushed deeply, looking down at the ground and thanked him before carefully climbing out of the sleeping bag. After gathering her stuff, Lullaby went through the door, across the living space of the tent, and into the bathroom, which, funny as it seemed to Harry, actually had a working shower, toilet, and sink.

It had been forty-five minutes since Lullaby had entered the bathroom, and she still wasn't out. The three guys took turns asking her when she would be done. Every time they asked, she would say only a couple more minutes. After the exchange had been going on for nearly twenty minutes, the guys decided just to sit and wait it out.

"So, I heard you talking to someone last night, Remus. If I'm not mistaken, I could've sworn that I heard you say 'Padfoot' before you actually went to bed. Care to explain?"

Remus accidentally dropped his steaming cup of lavender and chamomile tea onto his lap and Sirius had begun choking on the mouthful he had.

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Harry."

Sarcastically, Harry replied.

"Sure, you don't. It might've just been my imagination running wild because of how tired I was."

"That's true, or you could've just dreamt the whole thing early on during the night."

"But I'm willing to bet my own life that Sidney is Sirius. He sounds the same, he kinda looks like him, and definitely acts like him."

"And I'm willing to bet my life savings that Harry is right, Daddy. Why don't you tell him the truth? Or did you want me to do it?"

All three of the males jumped, having not heard the bathroom door opening. Remus glared at his daughter before sighing.

"Since it was your idea you can explain it. I get the bathroom now."

Lullaby nodded before walking around the couch, waiting to take her father's seat. The moment Remus closed the bathroom door, Lullaby turned to see Sirius and Harry staring at her, with both mouths hanging down to the floor.

Lullaby was wearing super-tight, white capri's that rested on her hipbones, a glittery lavender halter tunic that was tight around her breast area and flowed airily until it stopped at the top of her thighs. She had decided to wear glittery lavender lace-up wedges, similar to the ones she had worn the day before.

Her make-up was simple: light purple eyeshadow, a thin line of black eyeliner, and passion pink lip gloss that smelled and tasted like passion fruit.

The simple silver watch was back. Her ears carried silver chandlier earrings with heart-shaped charms. Her neck was adorned with a simple silver chain that had a silver heart as a good luck charm. And today, she had decided to wear the silver chain bracelet, with it's many colorful charms, that she had received from Melody and Harmony as a 'going away' present.

It was obvious that Lullaby had used a special hair potion, since her hair, which was still frizz-free, was now hanging in elegant curls down hair back. Last night, she had told Harry that her hair refused to stay in the curls she set it into, and this made Harry automatically think that she had used a hair-curling potion. The curls were not loose, but they definitely weren't tight, like those of Shirley Temple.

The moment Lulaby sat down, Harry began to speak.

"First, I gotta say that you look fabulous. And second, what did Remus mean about it being your idea in the first place?"

"You're so sweet to say that, harry. And it was my idea. You see, in order for Uncle Sirius to join Daddy and I in London yesterday, he would have to be either in his animagus for or under a glamour charm. We had just gotten off the bus when I realized he couldn't possibly go by Sirius Black, even in disguise. So, using my quick thinking, Uncle Sirius Black became Uncle Sidney Malkovich."

"And why that name?"

"Well, Sirius is the name of a star, and a man named Sidney Omarr was an astrologer. You see the connection there?" Harry nodded. "And since my mother's maiden name was Malkovich, and she was a muggle-born witch, the last name would be virtually untraceable in the magical community. And, she was also from an American family. It fits in two ways, if you really look at it."

Harry sat, dumbfounded, while he put all the information together in the correct places. When he finally saw the brilliance in Lullaby's plan, he looked at her and smiled. Before he could speak, however, Sirius beat him to it.

"I was thinking about the plan ever since she came up with it. I keep telling Remus that she'll either be in Gryffindor or Slytherin. And I'm more than willing to bet half of the gold in the Black family vaults that she'll land her tushie right in the middle of Slytherin."

Harry looked horrified at the thought.

"Sirius, don't say such a thing. The tension that's between Gryffindor and Slytherin is already hard to handle. It doesn't need any more fuel on the fire. By the way, Lullaby, the plan is great. I'm impressed that you alone came up with it."

At this, Lullaby blushed a bright scarlett that would make any Weasley jealous. Lullaby only looked up when she felt the cushion next to her dip down, causing her to tilt to the side a little bit. She blinked her amethyst colored eyes when she realized Harry had moved so that he was sitting only inches away from her. She looked away from his emerald eyes again when she felt that his stare was becoming too hard for her to take any longer.

"I'm going to go start breakfast. What do you two want me to make?"

Lullaby jumped to her feet and turned to stare daggers at Sirius, who began to cower under her burning gaze.

"Uncle, you stay out of my kitchen. I trust no ones cooking but Mommy's, Daddy's, and my own. Sit down."

Harry had backed away, cowering when he saw and heard his future bride. Sirius quickly sat down, not wanting to make her any angrier. Shaking, Lullaby walked over to the kitchen area of the tent and promptly began fixing their morning meal.

Remus was just exiting the bathroom room when he heard his daughter stomping around in the kitchen. Looking at the other two guys, he sighed.

"Okay, who set her off?"

"I think we both did."

"Please explain, Harry."

And with that, Harry began telling his side of the story. When he finished, Lullaby came out of the kitchen, carrying a tray that included four bowls of warm cooked rice that had cinnamon and sugar mixed in, a platter that held freshly baked bran muffins, four glasses of cold milk, and four cups of fresh chamomile tea.

"So, what's you side of the story, mi angelito?"

"What story?"

"I heard you yell something at Sirius, then the next thing I know, you're banging around in the kitchen."

Lullaby's face flushed brightly with embarrassment before she sighed and sat down.

"I told Harry about the whole thing and how it was my idea in the first place. He was impressed by that fact. Then Uncle Siri said something about betting half of the gold in his family's vault that I would be sorted into Slytherin, causing Harry to chew him out about having such a thought. I was feeling upset that if I were to end up in Slytherin, Harry would act harshly toward me just because of the House. But then Uncle Siri said he was going to make breakfast, which I actually forbid him from doing."

"So, the banging in the kitchen was you blowing off some steam from the exchange between these two?" Lullaby nodded. "I see. It won't matter what House you get sorted into. I'll love you just the same."

Lullaby's eyes began watering slightly before she started speaking.

"But you and Mom were both in Gryffindor. So were Harry's parents and Uncle Siri. Harry is a Gryffindor, and what if I am in Slytherin? He'll hate me just because of me being put into his rival House, and then this whole relationship will fall apart."

When she finished speaking, she promptly burst into tears.

"Well, I think can be easily explained. Sirius, stay out of the kitchen, unless you wanna be on the receiving end of her wrath. Harry, she fears rejection from her loved ones. Please, don't make her feel rejected if she does get put into Slytherin."

Harry and Sirius both nodded, noticing that Lullaby was now quietly sitting and eating her breakfast. They thought that same thing at the same time: _"Man, female hormones are extremely crazy. I'm glad I'm not a woman.'_

After breakfast, since it was warm outside, the sun was bright, and there were no clouds in the sky, Remus let Harry and Lullaby explore in the woods for a little while, but to go no further than the property line.

While the teens were gone, Remus and Sirius went and sat in house, reading and talking in the living room. Sirius was the first one to speak after nearly two hours.

"They've been gone for quite a while. Shouldn't we be worried, Remus?"

"let's give them another half hour before we go searching for them. Odds are that she's giving him a lesson on forest plants, the same way she did to us yesterday at the Gardens, remember?"

Sirius relaxed a bit and nodded.

"You know, if Hermione doesn't get on Harry's case this year about his study habits, I bet you anything that Lullaby will."

Chuckling, Remus replied.

"Somehow, I don't doubt that, Sirius. That's just the way she is. And I can tell that she already has Harry wrapped around her perfectly manicured finger."

They fell back into silence. Minutes ticked by, each seeming like an eternity. After another thirty minutes, Remus stood up and suggested that they go on a hunt for the teens. Sirius closed his book and followed Remus outside.

The two adults had been searching for nearly three hours, but there was no sign of the young couple. If Sirius was really worried, it was nothing compared to Remus' reaction to not finding hide nor hair of his daughter or Harry.

They were about to give and go call for help when they passed a large green wall, like the kind you'd see in a labyrinth, and heard two different laughs, one musical and feminine, and the other one deep and masculine. The old marauders looked at each other and grinned. Silently, they walked along the outside of the wall, watching for an opening, which they finally located after nearly ten minutes.

Remus and Sirius walk through that maze for approximately thirty-five minutes before they reached the very center and found the teens sitting on the ledge of a large fountain, their feet resting in the water. Lullaby had her arm around Harry's lower back, while his arm was draped over her shoulders. Her head was resting on his shoulder and he had his cheek rest on the top of her head. Since, last night, Harry had told her his adventures at Hogwarts, Lullaby had felt that it was only fair that she tell him about her time at Winterland.

"I can't help but think that Hogwarts will be harder to handle than Winterland. Plus, we have to wear uniforms. I've never had to wear a uniform in my life."

"What about your girl scouts?"

"Only the sash that we put our badges on. And the troop hats at the big meetings. But other than that, absolutely not."

"it's not so bad, really. In a way, it makes everyone equal, the same, no one better, and no one worse."

"But I don't think everyone should be the same. I feel that everyone should be free to express their individuality in the clothes they wear, as long as it is within reason."

Harry thought about that for a moment. He could see where Lullaby was coming from. But then again, with everyone dressing in the same manner, no could be ridiculed for what they wore.

Remus and Sirius waited a few more minutes for one of them to say something, but when it remained silent, they walked over to talk to the teens, they saw that both were fast asleep. Sirius was smirking over at Remus, who was wishing that he had his daughter's digital camera with him.

The picture was perfect: Harry and Lullaby sleeping, leaning against each other, feet in the water of a beautiful fountain, the luscious green foliage hiding about half of the sunset, which was turning the sky different shades of pink, yellow, and lavender.

Sirius looked at Remus questioningly. When Remus moved to pick up his sleeping daughter, Sirius did the same for his godson. Together, they walked through the labyrinth, out the way they came, and walked home, the trip taking about an hour or so.

After laying the teens down on Remus' bed in the bedroom, the adult went out into the kitchen for fresh chamomile tea and some cookies that Lullaby had made the week before on a night when she couldn't sleep. Despite being a week old, the cookies were still soft and delicious.

While the two of them were having a quiet conversation out in the kitchen, Lullaby and Harry lay in the bedroom, sleeping, for nearly another hour before emerging from said room, both rubbing the sleep from their eyes. Remus and Sirius turned to face the door to the kitchen the second they heard to different sounding yawns.

Chuckling, Remus ask if they had a good nap.

"Of course, Daddy, but how did we get home? The last thing I remember before falling asleep is having my feet in the water and talking about my dislike for uniforms."

Sirius cleared his throat and took the liberty of explain what they did while the teens were M.I.A., so to speak. When he finished his tale, Lullaby looked at Harry and turned to move to the stove to make supper. She wasn't planning extravagant, but definitly filling. She pulled out her favorite box of Tuna Helper, Creamy Broccoli, and set about preparing everything for the meal. When it was nearly done, and the sauce just needed to thicken, Lullaby buttered eight slices of white bread, placing two on each plate. And the moment it was finally done, she dished them all up and brought the plates over to the table. Before she sat down, she walked over to the fridge and pulled out the pitcher of milk and grabbed four tall glasses out of the cupboard.

Just as she was walking over to sit in her seat, a brown barn owl flew into the kitchen and landed on Lullaby's shoulder. After she romeved the letter it carried, the owl flew over to sit on Remus' shoulder instead, where he received a piece of the bread.

At Lullaby's gasp everyone in the room looked at her. Lullaby didn't say anything, merely held up three tickets to the Quidditch World Cup. When she did look up from the letter, she had a large smile on her face. Before anyone could ask her what she was so happy about, she began reading the letter out loud.

"_Miss Lupin,_

_Greetings from Hogwarts._

_My name is Albus Dumbledore, and I am the Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardy. _

_I'm sure your father has told you that I am unable to attend the Quidditch World Cup this year due to important, and extremely confidential, issues. I have not acquired one ticket for the Cup, but instead it was three. Please invite any others that you wish to include on this occasion._

_I must be off. I await your arrival to Hogwarts with excitement and anticipation._

_Best regards,_

_Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore,_

_Headmaster of Hogwarts_

_Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorcerer, Chief Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confederation of Wizards_

_By the way, your mother's friend, Bethany Nikols, has decided to move to England, and her twin daughters, Melody and Harmony, will be transferring to Hogwarts, along side of you. I know that knowing this will please you, seeing as how they are your closest and dearest friends."_

Lullaby started jumping up and down with excitement over the fact that her two best friends would be attending this strange, new school with her. After nearly five minutes, she finally settled down into her seat, wide smile still plastered onto her face.

"It doesn't just please me. It's my own personal version of Heaven. I had no idea about how I would get through this first year at Hogwarts without the twins, but now I don't need to worry. Well, except for the fact that we might end up in totally separate Houses, but I'll still see them every day. Daddy, I'll be right back. I'm going to fire-call them now. I want them to come to the Quidditch World Cup with me."

And with that, the guys almost didn't see Lullaby as she jumped from her chair and ran to the living room, and over to the fireplace to call her friend. Remus was stunned into silence, Sirius was laughing so loud that the house nearly lost it's windows, and Harry calmly followed Lullaby to the fireplace, where she was just starting to make a fire.

"Why don't we just go over there and invite them over? We, and by we, I mean you, can help them pack for the trip and stay here with us. You get to spend time with them, and it gets them out of their mother's hair while the moving arrangements takes place."

Lullaby stopped and thought about the idea.

"Your brilliant, Harry! How I didn't come up with that plan, I have no idea, but let's go. Daddy, I'll be back in a bit, and Harry's going with me."

After throwing some Floo Powder into the fire, Harry and Lullaby held hands, and stepped into the green flames, where Lullaby shouted _'Nikols Plantation!'_ The flames surrounded them and after a few moments of stomach-tossing discomfort, they were in the middle of a large, bright, and airy room. They quickly brushed themselves free of soot before Lullaby call out to the family.

"Auntie Beth! Melody! Harmony! You home?"

Thirty seconds later, two gorgeous teen girls and a stunningly beautiful woman entered the room, all three running toward Lullaby, having not yet noticed Harry standing close by.

"Oh, my sweet Lullaby! We've missed you so much."

"Yeah. What took you so long to come see us?"

"No fire-call, no owl, nothing."

Lullaby blushed and looked down.

"Sorry. I've been out of it lately. The medication has been helping, though I'm not sure just how much. The other day, Daddy was complaining that I wasn't eating enough since Mom died. I've been writing in my journal and crying like crazy. I hardly sleep, and the only time I get more than an hour is when I'm curled up with Daddy."

The three residents of the house all nodded their understanding. Beth looked out of her peripheral line of sight.

"So, Lullaby, do tell. Who is this handsome young man you have brought with you?"

At that, Melody and Harmony moved so that there was one twin on each side, right next to his arms.

"Oh, I nearly forgot. Auntie Beth, did my Mom ever mention a magical contract to you?" Beth nodded her head, and Lullaby continued. "Well, seeing as how she obviously told you about it, then you must know that this is my intended, Harry James Potter. Harry, this is my Auntie Beth Nikols, and her twin daughters, and my best friends, Melody and Harmony."

Harry did a very awkward bow toward the three strangers.

"It's a pleasure to meet you all. Lullaby has told me many good things about each of you."

After about ten more minutes of pleasantries, Harry suggested that Lullaby tell them the main reason for the visit.

"Okay. Well, you see, I received three tickets to the Quidditch World Cup this year, and I have two left. I want Harmony and Melody to come stay with me from tonight until you're completely settled into your new place in England. Not to mention that it'll get them out of your hair for a couple of weeks while you make the moving arrangements. And I figured that the girls would want to come to the game since they play the positions of the Beaters. Plus, they'll get to meet Daddy and the family I'll be staying with for that night, since it's the full moon."

Beth took a moment to think it over before agreeing to the idea. When their mother had given her consent, Melody and Harmony led Lullaby out of the lounge and up to their bedrooms to pack, leaving poor Harry to fidget slightly in the presence of Lady Nikols.

Finally, after nearly forty-five minutes of waiting, on Harry and Beth's part, the trio of girls reentered the room, the twins each carrying two suitcases, and Lullaby carrying the sleeping bags and pillows. It took about five minutes for all the 'good-byes' and 'good nights' to be exchanged before the group Floo'd back to 'Lupin Cottage'.

When the group emerged, one by one, from the fireplace, they were greeted by Remus Lupin and a large black dog.

"Daddy, this is Melody and Harmony Nikols. Girls, this is my father, Remus Lupin. And this cute poochie is Padfoot." Lullaby said as she wrapped her arms around Sirius' large dog body.

She kissed the top of his head before leading the girls outside to the tent and got them situated in the same room as herself. In true girl-time tradition, she booted harry out of the bedroom they had shared the night before, causing him to have to share the other bedroom with Remus and Sirius.

"Is she always going to be that way?"

"Merlin, I hope not. She hasn't seen them in a month, since the funeral, actually. They have quite a bit to catch up on. Don't worry, though, Harry. They can have their girlie party, and we can have a guys' night. They do make-overs, and we play cards."

Harry's eyes brightened at the idea. He was never treated like one of the guys. He was always just a kid in the eyes of most, and a nuisance to others. Harry was heading to his new room when Lullaby walked out of hers.

"Hey, Daddy, we're just going to have pillow talk instead of the usual girlie stuff. We're too tired to actually be girly. Good night, Padfoot." Kiss on top of head. "Good night, Daddy." Kiss on cheek. "Good night, Harry." Kisses to the forehead, each cheek, the nose, and one on the lips.

Lullaby turned to return to the 'Girlie Room' but was stopped by Harry grabbing her arm.

"Can I speak to you for a moment? Outside?"

Lullaby looked at him for a second before nodding. They left the tent and moved to sit on the blanket that they had been laying on the night before.

"What did you need to speak to me about, Harry?"

"W-well, I-I was w-wondering if, you know, m-maybe, I could stay in the room with you and the twins. I just don't know if I'll be able to sleep properly tonight. Last night was heaven because I knew you were on a couple of feet away, and I would be able to protect you."

Lullaby began blushing slightly over the fact that Harry was already so protective of her. Inhaling, she turned to face Harry, who had the puppy-pout of his face. Sighing, she spoke.

"Okay, fine, you win. I'll need to do some rearranging, then. Currently, I'm sandwiched between Melody and Harmony. I'll need to put them next to each other, since you're so keen to sleep close to me."

"What about a circle?"

"Circle?"

"Yeah. You know, your heads are all in the center so you can lay in your stomachs and talk."

"Good point. Let's go. You seemed happy about the card games with the guys, though."

"I was, but I must protect you. I'm happier knowing I can keep you safe. Not to mention the fact that I enjoyed waking up and receiving a kiss right away."

Lullaby shook her head slightly, a smile on her face. The teens stood up and walked back into the tent, holding hands, and smiling.

"Sorry, Daddy, but Harry is mine tonight. We're off to bed now. Good night."

And before Remus could say anything, Harry and Lullaby were in the bedroom, where the twins were pacing back and forth, waiting for Lullaby to return. They stopped moving when the two entered. Lullaby ignored the looks she was receiving and moved the sleeping bags around. Melody would be on the west side of the circle, Harmony on the south side, Harry would be on the east side, and Lullaby would be sleeping at the north point.

Nearly twenty minutes later, after the twins had finally fallen asleep, Lullaby moved out of her sleeping bag and silently crawled over to where Harry lay sleeping, or so she thought. Just as Lullaby was about to kiss Harry's forehead, he opened his eyes, and smirked.

"I was wondering when you were going to cave and come to see me."

He opened his sleeping bag enough for Lullaby to crawl in and lay comfortably against him. Her hand was fisted lightly in his pajama shirt, and his arm was draped over her middle back. After a few more kisses, the two of them fell asleep, content to be laying in each others arms, even though they barely knew one another. A short while later, a black dog, that no one had noticed, left the room, knowing that this would be a very interesting year at Hogwarts for everyone.


	8. The TALK

The next couple of days passed without a problem. Unless you count the morning after the twins arrived. Remus had gone nuclear and every night since then, Harry and Lullaby slept in separate rooms, and Harry was heavily guarded during the night by Remus, who slept near the door of the room in case Harry tried to sneak out to the girls' room or if Lullaby tried to sneak into Harry's room.

Finally, it was the day before the Quidditch World Cup, and while Harry, Remus, and Sirius (as Padfoot) where chatting out in the yard, Lullaby, Melody, and Harmony were in the bedroom of the house, packing for the next couple of days. And, of course, like most girls, they each had packed enough clothes to last for two weeks.

Today, for the trip back to the Burrow, Lullaby had decided to wear her sparkly black capri's, her favorite sparkly plum tube top, and sparkly black wedges with ankle straps.

Again, she had black eyeliner, pale pink blush, and Passion Pink lip-gloss, but this time her eyeshadow wasn't the usual light lavender color. No, today she decided on a deep plum purple with silver sparkle powder to give it an awesome effect.

Simple purple stud earrings, the thin silver chain necklace, with matching bracelet, and the watch were her jewelry of choice.

Lullaby had pulled her hair back into a neat pony-tail on the lower part of her head and twisted it up and held it up by a large black hair clip, and had left the last four inches of her hair drape over the clip, concealing the clip and creating a rather casual and sophisicated look.

Melody, who was the first one to finish packing, wore a solid royal blue, cap-sleeved tunic that dropped to her upper thigh, a pair of simple black pants, and plain black flip-flops.

Since she didn't have her ears pierced, she wasn't wearing earrings, and with a necklace, she felt like she was being choked. Bracelets, in her opinion, caught on everything, so her only piece of jewelry, if one can call it that, was her silver watch.

Her make-up was minimal, seeing as how she only wore light grey, nearly white eyeshadow, a tiny amount of black eyeliner (both of which brought out her happy aquamarine eyes), no blush, since none was needed with her sun-tanned skin, and a clear coat of kiwi-flavored glossy lip-gloss.

Melody's honey-blonde hair was hanging down in loose, elegant curls around her head. She couldn't do very much with her hair since she had it layered and cut to chin-length.

Harmony, Melody's twin sister, was wearing a super-tight, beaded magenta tank-top that showed the top half of her cleavage and the bottom of her belly button (the bottom of her ribs if she raised her arms and streched), a pleated black mini skirt that just barely reached mid-thigh.

A black leather choker, with magenta and silver broken hearts, was around her neck and a matching band was on each wrist, along with a silver watch on her left wrist. She had three piercings in each ear, and wore a pair of onyx studs in the middle hole, a pair of diamond studs in the top hole, and a pair of magenta hook earrings, each having half a broken heart, in the bottom hole.

Unlike her sister and friend, Harmony always went all out with her make-up. To make her silvery ice blue eyes really stand out, her eyeshadow was bright hot pink, a moderately thick line of sparkly black eyeliner, and glittery black mascara. A light pink blush added a tint of color to her overly pale cheeks, and a dark pink lipstick, with a layer of glossy, wildberry lip-gloss really pulled ones eyes to her lips.

Since they weren't completely identical for being twins, instead of honey-blonde hair like Melody, Harmony's hair was a light, platinum blonde color, with a two-inch wide streak of hot pink on the top in the front, where her bangs would be. She had gotten the idea from Avril Lavigne. She had her hair cut in the same style as Avril. Her hair was left down after she had used a hair straightener on it.

If one were to really look at them and not know who they were, one would guess that Melody was the shy, conservative type, and Harmony would be the wild, outspoken type, and Lullaby settled comfortably between them.

Once the girls were done packing, they joined the guys in the yard, where they arrived just in time to hear Harry groan. Apparently Remus had decided to bring up the incident after a few nights before, as well as a couple other topics.

"Harry, I'm going to give you the best talk I can. It could be better, but since I don't have very much experience with this kind of thing, it might be very weird."

Lullaby chose that moment to jump in, a bright, shining smile plastered on her features.

"Daddy, are you finally going to give Harry the 'Birds and the Bees' talk?"

Harry visibly paled. He had been expecting this since the first night, but didn't expect Lullaby to sound excited about the idea.

Remus sighed.

"Yes, I am, sweetie."

"Good. I'm going to listen in on it, like I told you I would. It's just going to be comical, I can tell right now. Melody, Harmony, why don't you guys check out the labyrinth? Padfoot knows the whole thing. He'll show you the way."

The twins nodded and waited until Padfoot had started walking off before they, themselves, moved. The moment they were alone, Remus suggested they go into the house for added privacy. Remus was dreading the whole the upcoming conversation. Harry was embarassed; it was bad enough receiving the speech, but to have your girlfriend listen to it was mortifying. Lullaby couldn't keep her amusement and joy inside, and therefore was skipping joyously into the cottage.

Lullaby headed into the kitchen for three of her flavored mineral waters, a box of saltine crackers, and a protein snack bar before joining the two guys in the living room, where Remus and Harry were trying not to look at each other, embarrassment written as clear as day upon both of their faces. Shaking her head, she sat down on the window seat next to Harry after she had distributed the snacks. Remus cleared his throat, causing the teens, specifically Harry, to look at him.

"Harry, I'm going to break this down as best as I can while keeping it informative. I believe that you are too old to hear the 'Birds and the Bees' version of it, which is more for eight or nine year olds that are starting to get curious. But first, I need to ask if there are any topics you need help understanding more than others?"

Harry paled, yet again, before thinking about the different topics that would fall in with this type of conversation. He never thought that he would be getting this lecture from a friend of his father's, let alone one of his ex-professors or the father of his girlfriend. It was already so very awkward for him.

Swallowing thickly, Harry answered Remus.

"Not that I can think of, sir."

Remus was the one to become slightly pale this time around, seeing as this could be a lot tougher than he thought. But before he could begin his 'lesson', Harry spoke up once again.

"I have an idea. How about you just say 'Control yourself, Harry. Wait until marriage. And if I find out you touched my daughter in anyway that resembles sexual nature, I'll personally hunt you down and kill you, Dark Lord be damned.' It would save us both time and embarassment."

Remus took a moment to think it over. _'Surely by fourteen, a boy should know the basics for male and female anatomy. I do believe I can trust him on this subject.'_

"Harry, I think you just covered it. Glad we could have this talk. But seriously, even if you are the son of one of my old school friends, you are dead if you touch Lullaby in any inappropriate way before graduation, or better yet, your wedding night."

Harry released a relieved breath and smiled at Remus, who returned it, while Lullaby was fuming in her seat. Both guys were valiently fighting fits of laughter, each knowing how much she had been looking forward to an intimately embarassing conversation.

"You know, you're both kill-joys. I was hoping for a dramatic affair. Melody, Harmony, and I could've done a better job." _'And I think we'll do just that…tonight. During lunch. Uncle Siri will enjoy that.'_

About an hour later, Harry, Remus, Lullaby, and the Nikols' twins were seated in the tent, having lunch, while Padfoot was taking a nap next to Lullaby's chair. The air was thick with tension. After nearly ten minutes, Harmony spoke.

"So, the labyrinth was interesting. Good thing Padfoot knew the way. Mel and I would've gotten lost after a few minutes. I especially liked the fountain."

"I completely agree, Harmony. But I think there should be some flowers in there. Too much green."

Silence decended once again. Only now, Padfoot was pretending to be sleeping. Lullaby had told the twins what she was planning to do. He just happened to be within hearing range. He knew that this would be very interesting. And the fact that it was Lullaby's idea proved that he would be correct in the genious-factor of the plot.

"So, Harry, Lullaby tells us that you play the position of Seeker for your House team. How long?"

Harry blanched for a moment. '_Silence. The labyrinth. Silence. Now Quidditch. Something's going on here, but what?'_

"Oh, yes, I do. Since first year, actually. One of the boys in the rival House was picking on one of my Housemates and I stood up for Neville. The next thing I knew, Malfoy and I had ended up in the air. He threw Neville's Remembrall and I went after it. I caught the darn thing right in front of my Head of House's window. And boom, I'm on the Quidditch team."

Harmony, the clever minx that she is, pretended to be interested on what Harry thought about Quidditch long enough for Melody and Lullaby to get the courage to bring up their planned conversation.

And Harry, who was still talking with Harmony, had noticed that neither Remus or Lullaby had said anything around him, or each other, since they were in the living room earlier. He was just waiting for the other shoe to drop. And sure enough, Lullaby didn't disappoint him.

"Daddy, did you know that Hamony's recent ex-boyfriend's mother had him when she was only thirteen years old?" Lullaby asked her father, a very Slytherin-like smirk on her face.

Remus, who had just taken a drink of his tea, started sputtering, spraying, and choking on his tea. Harry promptly dropped his head onto the table. Sirius, as Padfoot, was trembling slightly, trying not to start barking with laughter.

Melody and Harmony were just sitting there, acting as though this was an everyday conversation. And Lullaby was smiling evilly.

Eventually, Remus managed to catch his breath enough to confront his daughter, a look of disbelief on his face.

"No, I didn't know that. But I don't think we need to get into that type of conversation."

One eyebrow arching, Lullaby spoke again. "I think we should, seeing as how his mother was only a couple of years younger than Mom, in age, when it happened. Alex's mother was raped at age twelve by her step-father, who had slipped Rohypnol into her late-morning tea. Her mother never believed her. But then again, her mother was a drug addict. At age thirteen, she had Alex. Her step-father wasn't aware of the fact that he had gotten her pregnant because she had run away the day after she found out she was pregnant. Over the river and through the woods, to her grandmother's house she went. Her grandmother was the only person to believe her."

Lullaby stopped to take a drink of her strawberry flavored mineral water. "Alex is now sixteen and his current girlfriend, Sarah, are expecting their second baby. They obviously didn't learn from their first mistake. At thirteen, Sarah had their daughter, Bianca, who is going to be three on Halloween. They broke up a few months later, and Alex started dating Harmony."

Remus was speechless. He couldn't believe his daughter for her boldness on the subject. Glancing sideways, he notice that Harry, who had raised his head to look at her, was completely void of all color in his face. _'When she said that her and the twins could do a better job on the subject, she didn't say that they'd include such horrible things.'_

"Until about six months ago, everything was fine. Then Melody caught Alex fooling around with Sarah in the teacher's lounge, on the night of Harmony and Alex's two-year anniversary, instead of joining Harmony for a romantic dinner they had planned on having. Now, Sarah is six months pregnant with a boy and Harmony and Alex are no longer the 'perfect couple' of Winterland. And Alex's cousin, Danny, who is sixteen as well, got his tweleve year old girlfriend, Darla, pregnant four months ago."

Lullaby stopped, and took a drink of her water.

Harmony continued from where Lullaby had left off.

"At Winterland, most of the students start having sex around fourteen or fifteen. And before you jump to the conclusion that Winterland is irresponsible about the practice of safe sex, Danny and Darla did use a condom. One of the best brands, as a matter of fact. The problem is that only one form of birth control is 100% effective. Condoms are only 85-95% effective, since they have a possiblity of breaking or having an accidental manufactured defect. The pill is 99.9% effective, therefore leaving a 0.1% chance of conception. The patch is 99% effective, with a 1% window on pregnancy. If you really want to avoid any chance or risk of pregnancy, abstinence is the way to go."

Now, it was Melody's turn, although she had wanted to switch the topic with Harmony.

"There are also several different diseases that one can get from unprotected sex. AIDS, HIV, Genital Herpes, Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Syphilis, Gonorrhea, Crabs, Chlamydia, and Genital Warts, just to name a few. Most can be avoided with condoms, but all can be avoided by abstinence. Some can be treated with vaccines and other types of medications, but there are a few, like AIDS, that can't be treated at all. Some can also be transferred while performing oral and anal sex."

Harry and Remus were silent. Even Sirus had stopped shaking with silent laughter. If Harry had been pale before, now he positivly looked like Death warmed over, and Remus was no better in appearance. All of his scars from his transformations were now as visible as if he had drawn them on with a marker.

"It's quite gruesome, I know, Daddy. But it's all true."

"And we're not finished yet."

Grinning, Harmony and Melody stood up and walked about ten feet away from the table. For this part of 'The Talk', they were going to give a few physical examples. They may have been young but movies in America are very influencial and informative.

Giggling, Lullaby began the next part of the 'lesson'. "Our next topic: Foreplay."

Remus dropped his head to the table at the same moment that Harry tried to jump out of his chair, who ended up in a tangled mess, not only with the chair but also Padfoot, who tackled him 'playfully'.

"Foreplay can be done in more than one way. Sexual, physical, verbal, non-verbal, and emotional are the main types. Verbal is often shown in the form of flirtation, phone sex, and dirty talk, while non-verbal is more of the cyber-sex type, where one types out everything without saying a word. Physical can include playing 'Footsie', cuddling, hugging, gentle kissing, and even holding hands, in some cultures. Sexual is what most could call 'heavy petting'. Light brushing of hands on the breasts, even outside of the clothing, using hands and fingers, and even giving and receiving oral sex fall into this catergory. Using, and evn combining some of these leads to the emotional aspect of the whole thing. If one can achieve an orgasm through foreflay, they tend to look forward to the next stage of everything. The overwhelming feeling of such pleasurable experiences can often lead to a person 'falling in love', as it were. How a person performs during foreplay can leave an emotional mark on their partner."

Sirius was enjoying this way to much, since Remus had a look of absolute horror on his face, as though he couldn't believe his daughter knew this kind of information, and Harry was on the verge of tears, whether from Padfoot's body-weight or from the embarassing conversation was unclear. _'I'll be able to hold this over Remus' head for years to come. And, man, this kind of information has gotten more detailed since I was put in Azkaban.'_

While Lullaby had been talking about foreplay, the Nikols' were giving light demostrations, being twins and having seen one another when they were younger helped them to not be very shy when it came to visually explaining what Lullaby was talking about.

Finally, after another twenty minutes, the twins sat back down and the three girls began talking about girly things, such as shopping at the mall, planning a trip to the Spa, and, of course, which celebrities are the hottest.

The guys, and by guys, I mean Harry and Remus, left the tent out embarassment, while Padfoot walked over to Lullaby and placed his head on her lap, showing her that he thought it was brillant the way she managed to embarass her father with out having to try.

The girls were sitting there, smirking. "We did a great job with that. I thought Daddy was gonna kill me. Now all we gotta do is wait until sunset, when we go to the Burrow." The twins nodded their agreement.

It was gonna be an interesting afternoon at Lupin Cottage.


	9. Feelings and Apologies

The afternoon passed slowly after the girls finished torturing the guys with their knowledge of the sex topic. Every time Remus or Harry crossed paths with one of the girls, they turned bright red before turning away and going in a different direction. Sirius had no problem with the girls, especially since he knew it was a form of torment for his old friend. Harry and Remus kept sending him looks of contempt and betrayal whenever he was looking at them.

As soon as Sirius got away from the girls for longer than a minute, Harry and Remus cornered him, and when he realized this, Sirius knew he was screwed.

"Okay, Padfoot, that's it. Us guys are supposed to stick together, but here you are, bailing out on us. And for what? The favor of staying on Lullaby's good side. I refuse to believe that The Sirius Black would allow himself to become a humble being to another, and not just anyone, but three girls that are only fourteen years old. Have you no shame? Where is your pride, Padfoot?"

Sirius took a moment to look around before turning into the form of dear Uncle Sidney. Now that he could talk again, he wasted no moment.

"Now see here, you two. When it comes to Lullaby, Remus, I am honored to be humbled at her side. You and Harry are just mad that I took her side of this situation. You have to admit that I also got a lesson as well. I learned a few things. Whoever said that you can't teach an old dog new tricks is totally wrong."

And with that, he turned back into his Animagus form before heading back to where he knew the girls would be finishing up their preparations for the trip to the Burrow and then the Quidditch World Cup the next day.

xxxxxxx

"Harmony, have you seen my cherry flavored chapstick?"

Harmony looked up from the magazine that she was reading, and placed her sights on her dear friend.

"No, Lulls, I haven't seen it. The last time I saw it was about an hour ago. Mel was using it."

After waiting a few moments before Harmony put her head back down, Lullaby immediately recalled Melody asking to borrow her chapstick.

"That's right. Thanks, Harmony. You should finish getting ready, seeing as how we leave in an hour."

Harmony mumbled and grumbled for a moment before getting off of the window seat to finish packing the last few things she was going to be taken with her to the Burrow.

The two girls went in two different directions: Harmony, to the bedroom, and Lullaby, to the gazebo in the center of the garden to track down Melody.

As usual, when she was alone, Melody had one of her romance novels out and was on the sixth chapter when Lullaby stood over her, blocking the warm sunlight.

"Are you finished packing?"

Melody nodded an affirmative.

"Are you gonna tell me where my cherry chapstick is?"

reaching into her small handbag that matched her outfit, Melody pulled out the tiny tube of flavored lip balm, and handed it over to Lullaby, without looking up from her book.

"Thank you. Much appreciated. Hey, isn't that the book I got you for Christmas last year?"

Melody nodded again, this time she placed the bookmark in and closed the novel, before standing up and meeting Lullaby's eyes with her own.

"We only have an hour before we leave. What should we do until then, Lulls?"

Walking back to the house, Lullaby was thinking about how she had affected both her father and her boyfriend by their discussion earlier in the day. Suddenly, Lullaby stopped when a small trickle of some odd feeling went through her.

"- don't think that pink is really Harmo…. Hey, are you alright, Lulls? You look like you're gonna be sick."

"Hmm? Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Just peachy-keen, jelly bean. I can't explain it, but I think the three of us should apologized to the guys for what we did today."

Melody looked shocked for a moment before speaking.

"Who are you, and what have you done with Lullaby?"

"I know, I know. It's not like me to apologize over something like this but, I don't know why, I just feel kinda terrible about how we went about doing it."

At that moment, Sirius walked over to Melody and Lullaby, trying to find out what they were talking about.

"Hey, Paddy. Are you causing trouble? (Sirius played the innocent pet by tipping his head to the side.) Yeah, I didn't think so. Hey, can you help me find Harry and Daddy? I gotta talk to them. Melody, you go get Harmony, okay? We'll meet you in the tent."

Melody quickly walked to the house to get her sister, while Lullaby followed Sirius to where the other two guys were. After she had gotten their attention, Lullaby motioned towards the tent.

Five minutes later, the group was sitting in the tent's living room area once again. Harmony had been brought up to date on what the meeting was about. She, like her twin, was shocked.

"Okay, I'll go first, since I was the one who started it in the first place. Harry, Daddy, I'm so sorry for what I did to the two you earlier today. I may have gone a little overboard with the details, but I truly felt that the talk that went on between you was rather boring, dull, & uninformative. For the both of you. Harry, because you're still young, and Daddy, it's because you're a bit out of practice. So, I'm sorry."

Harmony waited until Lullaby stepped back into their line before rolling her eyes and stepping forward. Clearing her throat, she began her apology.

"Mr. Lupin, Harry, I, too, apologize for my earlier behaviour. While I admit that it wasn't the best way to go about delivering such a informative speech, I believe it was effective in delivering the message of not having sex, or practicing safe sex, if one can't control themselves. I am sorry."

Bowing, Harmony moved back to her original position, so her sister could take her turn. And sure enough, Melody skipped to the front of the 'Apology Zone' to begin her apology speech.

"Mr. Remus Lupin and Mr. Harry Potter, I ask for your forgiveness for my actions and words from earlier this afternoon. Like my sister has pointed out, it was a very effective way of delivering the message, even though it was a bit barbaric in the facts and details. Please, accept our apologies, and forgive us."

With that, the girls all bowed then left the tent, Padfoot on their heels, leaving Remus and Harry to think over the apologies that they had received.

"I think we should forgive them, Remus. As mean as it was of them, it truly was bound to happen. It's in their nature. Women are just naturally mean to men. I forgive them. What about you, Remus?"

Remus turned his head to look at Harry, and saw that he was facing the floor. Taking a deep breath, he nodded his head.

"I agree, Harry. She is my daughter, and that was her first apology in front of me. You gotta admit, it was, in a way, kinda funny the way they went about it, though."

"Yeah, it was. Now, let's go find them. And Padfoot, too, I suppose, since he went out with them."

The two men left the tent and located the group of four in the kitchen, eating a light snack before having to go to the Burrow for the next couple of days.

Clearing his throat, Harry announced that him and Remus had agreed to accept the girls' apologies, as long as the Weasley's wouldn't find out.

After another hour of snacks and small talk, Harry and the girls gathered their luggage, said good-bye to Padfoot, then used the floo network, with Remus right behind them, to head over to the Weasley's place.


	10. An Evening At The Burrow

Only moments after stepping out of the fireplace, Remus was suddenly surrounded by a sea of red hair and freckles. Switching uncomfortably from one foot to the other, Lullaby pulled on Remus' shirt.

"Daddy, I think you forgot to let the Weasley's know about Harmony and Melody. Oh, good evening, Molly. So nice to see you again."

Molly had quickly moved in and embraced both Harry and Lullaby.

"Harry, I see they took good care of you. And Lullaby, still so sweet and polite. I look forward to spending the evening with you. Oh, and these two young ladies must be…?"

"Molly, Arthur, everyone, these are the girls from the Howler that I received on my birthday. Melody and Harmony Nikols. They're fraternal twins. And happen to be my best friends and 'partners in crime', as well as family to me. I could say cousins, since I call their mom 'Auntie Beth', but we're close enough that I consider them my sisters. In fact, our birthdays are two weeks apart. We're practically triplets."

The twins nodded their heads in turn as they were introduced to the immediate Weasley clan. They were kind of taken by surprise when they noticed that only five of the fourteen people in the room didn't possess ginger-colored hair.

After a minute of silence, Hermione decided to begin the introductions.

"Hello, I'm Hermione Granger."

That snapped everyone in the room back to the present. One bye one, they each introduced themselves.

"Ronald Weasley. But, please, call me Ron."

"Ginerva or Ginny Weasley."

"I'm Fred and this is…"

"George. We're twins as well."

"I'm Charlie Weasley. Well, it's actually 'Charles'. It's nice to meet you both."

"Good evening. I'm William, or Bill Weasley."

"Pleasure to meet you. My name is Percy Weasley."

"Hello. I'm Arthur Weasley."

"I'm Molly Weasley. Welcome, girls, to the Burrow."

The twins nodded to each person as they introduced themselves, then looked over at Harry, Lullaby, and Remus, who cleared his throat before he began speaking.

"Melody and Harmony will be attending the World Cup with all of you, and Hogwarts, as well. I guess, from what I was told, the twins are staying with Lulls and I while their mother and father prepare everything for the move to England. By the way, I never did hear what their father's name is, Lulls. Care to enlighten me on that?"

"His name is Nicholai. Lord Nicholai Nikols. But I call him 'Uncle Nick'. He works, or worked, in the American Ministry of Magic, in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. He'll be working in the same department here in England. A plus side to that is Uncle Nick has never lost a single case on Defense. And he's defended werewolves, vampires, veela, giants, centaurs, you name it, he's done it. Think of him as a lawyer/defence attorney for magical creatures, since it is his speciality."

Remus looked over at the Nikols twins for confirmation, and the girls nodded, letting him know it was true. Turning back toward his daughter, Remus remained silent, not trusting himself to say the right things.

After a few minutes of silence, Arthur cleared his throat and turned to Bill, Charlie, and Percy.

"Could the three of you go out and set up the tables and the chairs for dinner? I'm helping your mother in the kitchen, and you are the only other ones that can use magic out of school right now."

The trio of red-heads nodded then left the room. Remus then followed Molly and Arthur into the kitchen, leaving the still school-bound youths in the living room to get to know each other.

"So, Harry, what did you and Lullaby do while you were gone?"

Harry jumped a little at that, not prepared for Ron to speak so suddenly.

"We camped out every night, went hiking in the woods everyday, I played cards with Remus while the girls did girlie stuff. You know, the usual things couples do."

Hermione and Ginny nodded their heads, while Ron, Fred, and George looked confused. During the next minute, there was silence throughout the room, which was strange at the Burrow. Suddenly, Melody moved over by Ginny and leaned in to ask her a question.

"Excuse me, uh, Ginny, right? (Ginny nodded her head.) could I possibly use your restroom?"

"Oh, sure. Follow me. It's Melody, right?"

The two girls headed over to the stairs and began ascending them.

"Yes, that's right. Thank you, Ginny."

"No problem. Here we are. I'll see you down stairs."

Melody and Ginny parted ways at the bathroom. Melody, to use the facilities, and Ginny, to join the others out in the garden. When Ginny reached the bottom of the stairs, the rest of her family, Remus, Lullaby, Harry, Hermione, & Harmony were heading out the door for supper in the garden. Ginny decided to wait in the doorway for Melody so that they could walk out together.

Out in the garden, Lullaby and Harmony had decided to have a practice sparring match, not only to show off, but also to train themselves and not get all rusted from lack of use. Molly and Remus were both fretting over the girls, and Harry was trying not to jump in and stop his intended from fighting of any kind. The rest of the Weasley family and Hermione were stunned by the marvelous display of determination, agility, and hand-to-hand combat maneuvers.

"So, Lupin, ugh, we meet again, ugh, in a battle, ugh, of physical, ugh, power, I see."

"Ugh, yes, it appears, ugh, to be that, ugh, way, Nikols. But just as, ugh, last time, I will, ugh, kick your butt, ugh, to the other side, ugh, of the planet."

"Ha ha ha. Ugh, don't make me, ugh, laugh. The day has, ugh, come for your, ugh, downfall at, ugh, my hands."

Ginny and Melody then walked out of the house, and the moment she saw what they were doing, Melody unlinked her arm from Ginny's and ran over to her sister and her best friend, and joined them in 'battle', thus showing off her not-so-girlie abilities.

After nearly twenty minutes, the girls called it a night and joined everyone at the dinner tables. They sat in a group, with Harry on Lullaby's left side, Harmony on her right, and Percy next to Harmony. On Harry's left, it was Fred George. On the other side of the table was Bill, Ron, Hermione, Melody, Ginny, and Charlie. Molly had taken her seat at one end of the table, while Arthur took the other end. Remus, who had decided to head back to Lupin Cottage, walked behind Lullaby and kissed her forehead.

"Buenos noches, mi angelito. I'll see you in two or three days. Behave and listen to Molly and Arthur. Don't cause trouble. That goes for all of you still in school. Good night, everyone."

"Buenos noches, Papi. I'll be as good as gold. Don't worry. I'll miss you, Daddy. Oh, before I forget, your potion is on the bathroom shelf with all the vitamins, mineral supplements, and medications. I'll see you in a few days."

Lullaby flung her arms around her father's neck and kissed his cheek before turning back to her supper and friends.

After dinner, Molly had Bill and Charlie move two cots into Ron and Harry's room for Fred and George, and one cot into the twins' room for Lullaby, Melody, and Harmony, and after one last mug of hot chocolate, with marshmallows, the household turned in for the night, since most had a very early start the next morning.


	11. Workouts, Breakfast, & Pasts

The next morning, around four-fifteen, before Molly Weasley got up to make breakfast, Lullaby woke up Harmony and Melody for their predawn relaxation, meditation, and sparring sessions. Lullaby had told her friends that there was a decent-sized lake over the hill, in the Wealsey's orchard, that they could run laps around before starting with the serious workout.

The trio were dressed in their near-matching outfits, and carrying almost identical yoga mats, when they left the bedroom, ten minutes later.

Lullaby was in black workout capri's with light lavender stripes on the side, light lavender sneakers with black laces and black flowers, a light lavender workout shirt, over a black sports bra, with black flowers on it, and her hair pulled back in a ponytail.

Melody was wearing her black workout pants with baby blue stripes on the sides, baby blue sneakers with black laces and black hearts, a baby blue workout shirt, over a black sports bra, with black hearts on it, and her hair pulled back in pigtails.

Harmony was dressed in a pair of black workout shorts with peony pink stripes on the sides, peony pink sneakers with black laces and black stars, a peony pink workout shirt, over a black sports bra, with black stars on it, and her pulled into a french braid.

Once they got to the lake, they unrolled their yoga mats and headed to the nearest tree and picked an apple each, knowing that the best workout would come from having something light and healthy in their systems. As the the sky began lightening on the horizon, the girls sat down on their mats: Lullaby on purple, Melody on blue, and Harmony on pink. Listening to the birds chirping as they awoke, the trio settled into their early morning routine.

After thirty minutes of meditating, the girls stood up and did a few leg exercises to prepare their leg muscles for the morning run around the lake. Keeping the same pace, the girls ran side by side, and conversed, their hearts and lungs being trained just as much as their bodies.

After five laps, about three minutes each, the girls rested on their mats again for fifteen minutes, then began their sparring matches, fifteen minutes each, in pairs, so that the one sitting out was meditating. First, it was Harmony and Lullaby, then Lullaby and Melody, and at last, Melody and Harmony. After they finished sparring, they meditated for another fifteen minutes before packing up and heading back to the house to get ready for the day, and breakfast, too.

When the girls entered the house, they heard Molly rushing about, fixing breakfast for everyone. After hurrying up the stairs, the girls took turns taking a quick shower, five minutes each, before they got dressed.

By the time they entered the kitchen, everyone was there, except Percy, Charlie, and Bill, since they would apparate later. The moment he laid his eyes on Lullaby, Melody, and Harmony, Harry dropped his fork, which clattered on his plate, alerting everyone.

Lullaby had walked in wearing purple camouflage cargo capri's, a tight, pale purple short-sleeved shirt, white ankle-high socks, purple sneakers, and a purple camouflage hiker's hat, and her hair in braided pigtails.

Harmony was sporting a pair of pink camouflage shorts, a tight, pale pink tank top, white ankle-high socks, pink sneakers, and a pink camouflage hiker's hat, and her hair was in braided pigtails, as well.

Melody had decided on a pair of blue camouflage cargo pants, a tight, pale blue, long sleeved shirt, white ankle-high socks, blue sneakers, a blue camouflage hiker's hat, and her hair was in simple pigtails, since they weren't long enough to braid.

It stunned everyone in the kitchen at how much the girls coordinated their outfits.

"Good morning, dears. Hurry up and eat before you leave."

"Thank you, Molly, but we'll make our own breakfast, if that's okay with you. By the way, what time did you get up this morning?"

"I think around five-forty-five. Why do you ask?"

"Oh, we were up an hour and a half before that. Meditating, running laps, and sparring. Our usual morning routine."

Everyone, especially Ron, was stunned into silence. How anyone could possibly stand getting up that early in the morning and still go to bed as late as the girls did was beyond them.

While everyone else had what Molly had made for breakfast, Harmony, Melody, and Lullaby made themselves cranberry bran muffins, baked honey oatmeal, blueberry banana bread, wild berry fruit smoothies, and a tropical fruit salad made with pineapples, mango's, passion fruit, kiwi halves, and a coconut cream sauce. When they were done cooking, they insisted that everyone try a bit of everything. Everyone, especially Molly, loved the food, and everyone, but Harry, was surprised by how well the girls could cook.

"You know what? I think I'll have you girls make the meals this year for the holidays. You're amazing."

Melody was the first to speak.

"Thank you, Molly. The real star of the kitchen, though, is Lullaby. She thinks of cooking as potions and muggle chemistry: if you don't get the ingredients just right, the whole recipe won't turned out the way it should, and then you have a mess to clean up."

Everyone looked at Lullaby.

"What? I have a genius IQ in both the muggle and magical worlds. Top of my class. Never had anything less than 'Outstanding'. Best in any activity I'm participating in. I was never late for anything. And managed to stay the star student at Winterland even though I was in detention half of the time since I started there."

At that, everyone that didn't know Lullaby's history dropped their jaws to the floor. Even Fred and George were in awe at Lullaby's detention record, though Molly was less than pleased by that. Hermione was slowly starting to feel competitive towards Lullaby, since she was top of her class at Hogwarts.

"And, not only that, but Lullaby has been the star of every ballet she's been in since the age of two, started martial arts at the age of four and reached the master's level at age 10, joined gymnastics at six and won every competition, and it's the same with figure skating at the age of eight. All of us are on the swim team since the of ten, top three, and Lullaby has brought home nothing but the gold to prove it. When we started Winterland, we all joined the cheer and dance squads, which after a year, Lullaby became captain of both squads. In our first year, we also joined the quidditch team. Harmony and myself are beaters, and Lullaby is a seeker. We've won every single game since we join the team."

Melody stopped talking and reached for her drink. Harmony took this time to launch into her's and Melody's background as well.

"Well, now you all know about Lullaby's past in school and extra-curricular activities. (And my medical health.) Really? Okay. I think you should know about me and Mel. I'm on the girls' basketball team, the girls' soccer team, the softball team, and the girls' hockey team. The star of all of those, actually. Melody is the star performer in the drama club, president of the art and wizard's chess clubs, and captain of the debate team. I need Ziprasidone for my Bipolar Disorder, Diazepam for anxiety, Pentobarbital for my sleep disorder, and Atomoxetine for my ADHD. Melody has Hemophilia A and requires her Desmopressin injection, since a tiny scratch would caused her to bleed to death if untreated.' Everyone that didn't grow up with the Nikols' instantly paled. 'And she has a Formoterol inhaler for her asthma, Ramelteon for her sleep disorder, and Meprobamate for anxiety."

In the kitchen, it was so silent, it was almost like someone had died. Not even the clock's ticks were audible.

"Morning, everyone. While I eat, you all go get your bags for the night, so we can head out in a bit. We need to walk to the portkey and meet up with the Diggory's."

The kids all nodded, then went back upstairs to get their things. The day was already starting to become interesting, and it was only 7:45 in the morning.


	12. New Friends, Old Friends, and Mr Malfoy

As they were leaving the house, Melody took two quick pulls of her inhaler before challenging Harmony and Lullaby to a race to the edge of the town, which the other two girls accepted. Just as Arthur closed the door, the trio took off at full throttle, making everyone else think they were on firebolts.

"Harry, mate, they're going to drive Filch crazy. And far worse than Fred and I have ever been able to do. And if the twins land in Gryffindor, we might end up losing our quidditch positions. And the same goes for you and Lullaby, since she's a seeker."

"Yeah, and not only that, but they'll also make us look like meek kittens, if their records are to be believed. I can't believe I'm saying this, but they might end up in Slytherin, and a small part of me hopes that they do. The problem with that is Melody and Ginny have gotten rather close already, and you're dating Lullaby."

Harry paused for a few moments, looking back and forth between the Weasley twins.

"I can't believe you two. Either way, I'm staying with Lullaby for life. And Melody and Harmony are her two best friends. It shouldn't matter what house they get into, what matters is that they're at Hogwarts now."

Harry then walked around the two boys and jogged up to walk beside Ron, who was walking behind Hermione and Ginny, who was attempting to convince Hermione to try on a little bit of light, sparkly make-up to brighten her feature a bit. And Hermione kept shooting down the idea, almost without hesitation.

"Merlin, Ron, your brothers don't think before they talk sometimes, do they?"

"Not really, Harry. Why? What did they say this time around?"

"Only that they are kind of hoping that Melody, Harmony, and Lullaby end up in any house but Gryffindor, and George actually said he's really hoping for Slytherin to get them. The down side to that would be that we're natural enemies. The bright side is that if the girls get in trouble here, the Slytherin's will be losing points every couple of days."

Ron turned and glared at his older brothers.

"Why can't you keep your opinions to yourselves for once?"

"Well, we figured that if the girls don't end up in Gryffindor-"

"We'll be able to keep playing on the team and bring Gryffindor to victory again this year."

Shaking his head, Ron threw up his hands, released a long sigh of frustration, and turned back to Harry and mumbled something about wishing he had a normal family that kept their mouths shut. That caused Harry to laugh hard and loud, making everyone, except the new trio, turn around to stare at him.

By the time Harry, Hermione, and the Weasley's reached the village, Lullaby, Harmony, and Melody were halfway done with creating their newest cheer and dance routines.

"Well, it's about time. We should've gotten you all up when we woke up. Maybe then you'd be as energetic as us. So, Mr. Weasley, where to from here?"

"Well, Melody, we go straight through town then to the top of Stoatshead Hill. Just remember to stop at the top, and not continue on down the other side."

"Got it, Arthur. Harry, Fred, George, hurry up. If the three of you don't get moving, you'll get fat and lazy, then be kicked from the quidditch team for being to slow to move."

Lullaby, Harmony, and Melody sqeaked and took off when the three boys picked up their pace to a jog, and started chasing the girls through town and up the hill. The group of six had been waiting at the top for fifteen minutes before the others could be heard huffing and puffing as they approached the top.

"Well, good morning. I see two of the Weasley boys. Where is the rest of the clan, I wonder?"

"Still lagging behind. You can tell by the huffing and puffing coming up the hill. I'm Lullaby Dream Lupin, sir, and this is Melody Nirvana Nikols and Harmony Bliss Nikols. They're twins."

"Pleasure to meet you three beautiful young ladies. I'm Amos Diggory, and this is my son, Cedric. Ced? Ce- Where'd he go?"

"Down the hill, sir, to help the others out, I'm guessing. I'm Harry Potter, by the way. _'Please don't go all crazy over that.'_ It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Merlin's beard! Are you really? Well, it's grand to meet you, dear boy."

At that moment, Cedric, the rest of the Weasley's, and Hermione appeared over the top of the hill, with all but Cedric breathing heavily. When he reached his dad, Cedric held out his hand to each of the girls.

"Hello, I'm Cedric Diggory."

"I'm Harmony Bliss Nikols."

"Melody Nirvana Nikols."

"And I'm Lullaby Dream Lupin."

Cedric's eyes widened when he heard Lullaby's name.

"Wait. Lupin. As in Professor Remus Lupin?"

"Yes, that's right. He's my father."

"Great teacher, Remus. Shame they sacked him. And simple because he's a werewolf. I didn't think it was fair. By the way, I just noticed that the three of you are wearing almost identical outfits. Did you plan that?"

"Um, yes, actually. We do it almost everyday, since we were little kids. It's a habit that's gonna be hard to break, honestly."

Cedric nodded his head and turned to his father, who pointed out the portkey's location on the hill. Harry looked at the mangy boot, confused beyond belief, until Lullaby told him it had to be something that muggles would think is just garbage and leave alone.

Amos and Arthur told everyone to touch the boot with a finger each before they began counting down from thirty. The circle was extremely cramped, with Arthur, Amos, Cedric, Harry, Lullaby, Harmony, Melody, Ginny, Hermione, Ron, Fred, and George, in that order, squeezed together around one tiny boot. As the countdown hit three, Lullaby told Harry to prepare to feel a pull from behind his navel. She then used her free hand and grabbed Harry's free hand, letting him know it was gonna be fine, since he had never traveled by portkey before.

And just as promised, a tight, rough jerk behind the navel pulled each person to their destination. After what seemed to be an hour, which was actually only five minutes, Arthur and Amos told everyone to let go of the portkey, which caused Harry and Hermione to look at the men with confused looks on their faces.

"Harry, just let go when I say three. And we'll let go together. One, two, three!"

Harry and Lullaby let go of the boot, but instead of crashing to the ground, like Harry feared, they floated casually down to the ground, the same way Arthur, Amos, Cedric, Melody, and Harmony did, while everyone else landed in a heap on the ground. Groaning, everyone on the ground got up and dusted themselves off before heading to the check-in point for the portkeys.

After a few more minutes of walking, they arrived at the muggle camp ground, where they checked in before going separate way, the Diggorys going toward the far end of the field and the Weasley group heading towards the edge of the woods, where their campsite was located.

Upon arriving, Lullaby, Melody and Harmony quickly pulled out Lullaby's tent that the twins had gotten her the year before for her birthday, and had it completely set up within five minutes, and were busy unpacking their things while Hermione and Harry were trying to help Arthur and the others pitch the other tent, which took about an hour.

"Harry, which tent are you staying in?"

"Probably yours, Lulls. Why?"

"Well, since we're having two tents, and mine has two rooms, I figured we could have about half of the group in each tent. So, that means six in one tent, and seven in the other. Harmony, Hermione, Melody, Ginny, me, you, and Ron makes seven for my tent."

"What about the other tent, then?"

"Arthur, Fred, and George, for now, anyway. Then Percy, Bill, and Charlie, when they join us later on today. That makes six for that tent. I'm a genius, I know."

Harry, Ron, and Hermione rolled their eyes subtly. Hermione, they could tell, was trying not to hit Lullaby.

"Hey, while I get the fire going, why don't a few of you go get some water?"

"Oh, right. I'll go, Arthur."

Lullaby grabbed the bucket and started walking down to where they had passed the water pump, followed quickly by Harry, Harmony, and Melody, leaving the Weasley's, with Hermione's help, to get the campfire going. Along the way to the water pump, Harry pointed out some of the other student from Hogwarts, and even introduced the girls to a few of them.

"Harry! Hey, Harry! Good to see you, Harry. You know, since I won't be at Hogwarts anymore. Oh, who are these three beautiful girls you got surrounding you?"

"Oliver, this is Melody and Harmony Nikols. They're twins. And this is my girlfriend, Lullaby Lupin. They're transferring to Hogwarts from Winterland Acadamy of Magic."

"Are you Professor Lupin's daughter or niece or something?"

"Yes, I'm his daughter. And you are?"

"Oh, Lulls, Melody, Harmony, this is Oliver Wood. He just graduated from Hogwarts. He was in Gryffindor and the captain of our house Quidditch team."

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Oliver, and I'd love to stay and chat, but we need to get water and take it back to the camp."

"I'll see you all later, then. Great to meet you, girls. Good to see you again, Harry."

"Yeah. Bye, Oliver."

As the group continued on toward the water pump, Harry was once again stopped by two more fellow Gryffindor's: Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas. After introductions were made and the group headed on their way again, a handsome young man jumped in front of the girls and enveloped them in a big bear hug.

"Oh, man, I missed. Wow, Lullaby, you have gotten even more beautiful since I last since you, if that's even possible."

"Hey there, Cody. You're certainly looking good these days, as well. Oh, by the way, this is Harry Potter, my boyfriend. Harry, this is Cody Aleczander. He was captain of my house Quidditch team, but, like Oliver, he graduated from Winterland."

"Pleasure to meet you, Harry. Lullaby, before I forget, I named you my successor. However, I recently found out about your mother, and you, Melody, and Harmony transferring here to Hogwarts, so I had to give the title of Captain to Dexter 'Da Bomb' Bruntz. I was upset about it, to tell you the truth."

"WHAT!?!?! I was chosen to be captain? Are you kidding me? Oh, man, now I'm pissed. Captain of a Quidditch team is the highest honor in sports at a magic school and I missed my chance. Fucking damn it!"

Harry's eyes went wide as he turned to face his intended bride. They had been together for a week, and never, not once, had Lullaby shown such vulgarity in front of him. It upset him greatly, if he was being honest about it. After a few more minutes of conversing, the group headed on their way yet again, finally getting the bucket of water, and returning to the campsite without anymore interruptions, which was a relief to Lullaby, since she hadn't taken her medications for anxiety and depression for the day yet.

Upon returning to camp, they group noticed that the other three Weasley boys had joined them, and that Arthur was talking to four important-looking wizards.

"Ah, here they are. It's about time, you three. I was getting worried. This is Mr. Bartemius Crouch, Mr. Ludo Bagman, Mr. Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic, and Mr. Lucius Malfoy."

Upon hearing the name of the last person Arthur introduced, Lullaby's anxiety and depression disappeared, only to be replaced by anger, knowing full well that the man standing in front of her was the reason that she was an only child. But she stayed quiet, though a look of dislike was on her face, while Arthur finished the introductions.

"I'm sure you all know my children, and Hermione and Harry, of course, but these are the Nikols' twins, Melody Nirvana and Harmony Bliss. And here we have Lullaby Dream Lupin, the daughter of the werewolf, Remus Lupin."

Lucius did a double take, noticing that Lullaby looked a lot like someone he had seen in the past, but just couldn't place where he had seen her.

"Arthur, do excuse me, but if I don't leave now, I might use my martial arts training on someone who deserves it, and that wouldn't be a good thing."

"Oh? And who might that be?"

"Mr. Malfoy, sir."

Silence, and then almost everyone laughed at that, with the only exclusions being Lullaby, Harry, Harmony, and Melody, who knew the reasons behind that comment.

"Mr. Malfoy, does the name Elizabeth Malkovich sound familiar to you?"

"I've heard it before, yes. But I don't remember where. Sorry."

Lullaby smirked, scaring Harry into thinking that she might have some Malfoy blood in her.

"Then allow me to refresh your memory. Think back to your fifth year at Hogwarts."

"Okay. What part of the year?"

"Halloween night. Which three friend were you hanging out with?"

"Pierre Parkinson, Gabriel Goyle, Virgil Crabbe, and Timothy Nott. Okay. Now what?"

"A dark corridor, an unsuspecting Gryffindor fifth year heading to the library after supper. Tell me what happened next."

"We- I- Oh, man. I completely forgot about that night."

"What happened that night, Mr. Malfoy?"

"We raped the girl. One at a time."

"Very good. And she became pregnant, and who turned out to be the father, based on the paternal blood tests?"

"It showed that I was the father."

"Ding, ding, ding. We have a winner here, folks."

"Little Lonely Lizzie. That's what us Slytherins' called her."

"You found out you were the father. What did you do after receiving that information?"

"She was about six months along when I found out. I tracked her down in the school a caused her to lose the child. So what? It's in the past. No need to dwell on it anymore, right?"

"Wrong. You're the reason I'm an only child when I could've had an older brother. You're the reason my mother never had sex again until her wedding night, which, coincidentally, happened to be on Halloween, and she got pregnant with me. She got married and became pregnant with me exactly four years, to the day, after the rape attack. It also happened to be the same night that James and Lily Potter became pregnant with Harry, who was born the day before I was. Our fathers were best friends, our mothers were best friends, and we recently found out that our parents decided to betroth us, and before we were even born, since they knew that one of us was a girl and the other was a boy."

Silence followed as Lullaby's words hung in the air. Lullaby's pale features were tinted with shades of pink and red, showing how ferious and upset she was.

"And I found all of that out three weeks after my mother died a month ago. That means I just received all of this information last week. And on top of that, because of the damn war with Lord What's-His-Face, I don't have younger siblings either, and I grew up without my father watching. Sure we wrote and talked on the phone, and he's seen pictures, but he never got the opportunity to witness my birth or hold me the day I was born, or hugged me before school or bedtime, or cheered for me at one of my events. And Harry, it's time for my Valium and Trazodone. And maybe the Ranitidine, since I'm starving and in the mood for chicken quesadillas. Hot and spicy. Have a good day, gentlemen. Good-bye, Mr. Malfoy."

And with that, Lullaby, with Harry, Harmony, and Melody on her tail, and Ron and Hermione following only moments later, turned and headed for her tent, where she spent the next three hours cooking and venting her anger in the kitchen, alone, since she forbid anyone, even her best friends, from entering 'her room'.

Outside, the adults went their separate ways, and didn't talk about the topic at all for the rest of the day. Or, at least, until the World Cup, where another run-in would happen.


	13. A RunIn With The Malfoy's

It was time to leave the tents and head towards the stadium on the other side of the woods for the World Cup. Almost everyone was ready, except Lullaby, Melody, and Harmony, who hadn't left the bathroom since they entered it…… a whole two hours earlier. Ginny and Hermione were selected to be the ones to go in and drag the trio out, if need be. However, just as they were reaching for the bathroom door nob, the door swung open, and the three girls finally exited the bathroom. And the moment they saw the girls, all the males dropped their jaws.

Melody's hair was curled in soft ringlets and pinned on one side with a sparkly, bronze-colored heart barrette. Her dress was sparkly and bronze-colored, and was spaghetti-strapped, clung tightly to her body until it reached her hips, where it flared out a bit, reaching her knees, and was accented by a pale blue satin ribbon rose on the front of her left hip bone. Her shoes were five-inch-high wedge strappy sandals, in the same color as her dress, with the straps the same color as the ribbon rose. Drapped around her shoulder was a satin shawl in the same light blue color as the rose and the sandal-straps. Her make-up was simple: pale blue eyeshadow, black eyeliner, no blush, and a light bronze-colored glittery lipstick. Her jewelry included a simple bronze bracelet and a delicate bronze necklace that had a small bronze heart charm on it, and simple bronze heart-shaped stud earrings.

Harmony's hair was crimped into deep waves and was pinned on one side by a sparkly, silver-colored star barrette. Her outfit and jewelry were indentical to her sister's outfit, except instead of bronze, the color was silver, and instead of pale blue, it was light pink, and instead of hearts, there were stars. Her make-up relatively simple: silver eyeshadow, black eyeliner and mascara, a delicate pink blush on her cheeks, and bright, peony pink glossy lipstick.

Lullaby's outfit and jewelry were the same as the other two, except that the colors were different. There was gold instead of bronze or silver, there was light lavender instead of the blue or pink, and instead of stars or hearts, there were flowers. Her make-up was decently applied: light purple eyeshadow, black eyeliner and mascara, no blush, and a rose-goldish lipstick that was both glossy and glittery. Her hair was in a simple french twist, with her bangs held to one side by a gold-colored flower barrette.

To say that the girls looked stunning would be an understatement. The girls looked like they were going to a fancy dinner party, and not an international Quidditch Final. It's just how they were, as Harry had explained when the girls had been in the bathroom for an hour. The had to dress their absolute best at all times, no matter what.

Now that the trio of girls were finally ready, Arthur herded the group out of the tent and through to the other side the woods to where the stadium was located. It shocked everyone that the girls could move so fast in such high shoes. The rest of the group practically had to run to keep up with the girls, they were moving that fast. The thing that really awed them, other than the fact that the girls moved fast in such tall footwear, was the fact that they were navigating their way through the woods, without stumbling or snagging their dresses on the shrubbery, and that they could do it with such grace.

After nearly twenty minutes of walking, the group finally exited the woods and stood before a great and completely grand magical stadium that made Lullaby's eyes light up like the stars, sun, and moon. Hundreds of thousands of witches and wizards from all over the world were present, some already in the stadium, finding their seats, and others were waiting in line to present their tickets to go in. about twenty yards away, Lullaby's eyes landed on the head of familiar, long, pale platinum blonde hair that belonged to none other than Lucius Malfoy. Next to Lucius stood a very pretty, blonde haired woman, who could've passed as a female version of Lucius, and a rather handsome teenage boy, who was the exact carbon copy of Lucius in looks, but only reached the man's shoulders.

Lucius felt someone staring at him and turned to see Lullaby sending a glare and a curt nod in his direction. He inwardly flinched when he saw her motion for the other two girls to follow her before heading over, he figured, to speak with him. Shifting his weight discreetly from one foot to the other, Lucius prepared himself for any verbal, and possibly physical, battles with Lullaby that might start up.

"Good evening, Mr. Malfoy. It's nice to see you again. I hope you can forgive my earlier manners. I hadn't taken a couple of my medications before then, so I wasn't exactly myself. Is this your family, sir?"

Lucius was taken aback for a moment, not expecting such an seemingly innocent conversation, but he had a feeling it was only to give off a good impression to his wife and son.

"Why, yes, they are my family. This is my wife, Narcissa Black Malfoy, and my only child, Draconis Orion Lucian Malfoy. Cissa, Draco, these are Lord Nicholai Nikols' twin daughters, Melody and Harmony. And this young lady is Lullaby Lupin. Her father taught Defense Against the Dark Arts last school year. Remember, Draco?"

"Wait. You're father's a werewolf?"

"Daddy has Lycanthropy, yes. But unlike most of his kind, he takes precautions so as not to put anyone in danger. Like, for instance, he sent me here with the Weasley family, Harry, and Hermione on account of the fact that tonight is a full moon and has locked himself in our cottage in the woods to keep everyone safe."

"What about your mother, then? Where is she?"

Lullaby hung her head and sniffled a moment before looking back up at Draco.

"My mother died a month ago. She was in a car accident on her way home from work. Her vehicle was hit by a logging truck. She died in the operating room during surgery. My gram-gram and papa bear died five years ago. That's when my depression started, but last month, I was put on medication because my mild depression turned into a full blown, never-sleeping, always crying, hardly eating form of depression. Daddy said I must've lost about five to ten pounds since Mom died. He was starting to get worried about my overall health."

"Where did your mother work?"

"She was the Minister of Magic at the American Ministry. She drove the car to work everyday and parked at a parking ramp that was only a block from the entrance to the Ministry. As a muggleborn witch, she wanted to stay close to her parents and her childhood beliefs by doing some things the muggle way, like traveling and cooking."

Nobody within hearing range said a word, though Melody, Lullaby, and Harmony were smirking. Lullaby's mother had been the American Minister of Magic, Nicholai Nikols was in the Ministry, as well, in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, and Bethany Nikols was working as a Mediwitch. The female trio had been raised in respectable homes, had grown up with loving parents, and were spoiled beyond all reason. All three girls had two properties each in every country around the world, had a muggle spending account and magic spending account each, both of which were filled to the brim, and two trust fund accounts in both the magical and muggle world, also filled to the brim. The girls were set for life.

Draco finally came out of his stunned state and made a _very_ big mistake the moment he opened his mouth.

"Ha! A mudblood as Minister of Magic?! Unheard of and unthinkable! I swear you three are compl-"

Draco never got to finish his statement as his face became introduced to Lullaby's fist and his stomach got the chance to meet her right knee. Everyone who had been watching froze.

"Nobody, and I mean nobody, calls my mother that filthy word in my presence. Especially not some pure-blooded, blue-blooded, trust-fund baby boy or his parents. As I told you before, Mr. Malfoy, my martial arts training will be used on someone that deserves it, and I have a feeling he's had it coming for a long time. Draco, you don't mess with a master martial artist, and expect to walk away without a scratch."

With that, Lullaby and the Nikols' twins turned and walked over to where the rest of their group was near the entrance of the stadium. No one opened their mouths to say anything, though Hermione, Ron, and Harry muttered a thank you under their breaths loud enough for only the three girls to hear. One could tell that this was gonna be a long evening. And Arthur just hoped no fights would break out because of Lullaby.


	14. Quidditch World Cup Confrontations

Once the group was in their box, Arthur turned to Lullaby and told her very seriously how much her father was going to be disappointed by her behavior when he found out the next evening. But somehow, Lullaby couldn't find it in her heart to care, all that she was concerned about was the fact that a small bit of retribution was being done. In her mind, it would do her mother a big favor and give her peace over that fact that Lucius Malfoy was getting his rear-end handed to him on a silver platter of revenge.

After waiting a few minutes, the game was finally about to begin, with the Irish and Bulgarian teams taking their places on the field. Lullaby tried as hard as she could to feel excited about the game, but she was too preoccupied by the thought that she was, in a way, healing her mother's pain. Only minutes after the game began, Lucius Malfoy stepped next to Lullaby and muttered to her under his breath.

"You'll regret doing that, Miss Lupin. Nobody strikes a Malfoy and walks away unscathed."

"Au contrair, Lord Malfoy, I heard that Hermione Granger popped him good towards the end of the last school year. Apparently he didn't tell you about that, huh? But then again, he has the same pride as any aristocratic pure-blood brat. If anyone were to have found out, he might've denied it or dropped out or transferred. And in his opinion, it left an invisible mark on his soul that can never be removed."

Lucius began trembling slightly, though he was able to conceal it well enough. Standing straighter, he glared down at Lullaby, who was watching the game but also sending an evil kind of smirk in Lucius' direction.

"Let's make a deal, Mr. Malfoy."

"What would that be?"

Turning, Lullaby faced Lucius with a very serious, 'don't mess with me' look plastered on her face.

"You keep that son of yours, and his friends, in line, and away from Harry, me, and our friends, and I won't press charges for what you and your old school friends did to my mother almost eighteen years ago. I've seen those kinds of trials at the American Ministry. They aren't very pretty. Your name would be tarnished for the rest of your life, and no amount of money can wipe the record clean."

Lucius stood frozen for a few moments while he pondered this girl's proposal. On the one hand, he could keep his family's record blemish free, but on the other hand, he was going to have a hard time trying to explain to his son the reason he wanted him to behave and leave the Gryffindor and his friends alone. Conflicted, Lucius started making a pro's and con's list in his head, while Lullaby turned back to the game, smirking in triumph, and saw that Ireland was winning so far. Apart from her little slip-up with Draco, her was almost as perfect as her birthday had been.

"Fine. I can handle that arrangement. You know, I could just give you money. I've got enough of it. All you would have to do is name your price."

"Money is only a material object. When you're dead, you can't take it with you, so you simply pass it on down the line in your family. And besides, the pain my mother went through, when she found out that you caused her to have a miscarriage, could never have a price tag greater than your life. So, unless you want to die to get rid of the 'guilt' of causing my mother such pain, I'd put your bank book back into your pocket if I were you, Mr. Malfoy. My mother's love towards me, and my love towards her, is worth more than any amount of money can buy. I seriously doubt all of your money would be enough to get me off your back about what you did to my mother. And as I should've told you earlier, I'm set for life. I've got money, into the trillions, actually, and I have two properties in each country, but like I said, money is only an earth bound possession that we all lose when we die."

"Fine. I'll play by your rules, for now, anyway. Just remember this: I'm one of the Governors for the school, as well as being in the Ministry. I've seen your records from Winterland. It won't be very long before you're out of Hogwarts."

And with that, Lucius turned and walked back over to where his family was residing in the spectator's box. Lullaby shot a satisfied smirk to everyone that she had come with and promised to tell them all everything once they were back at the campsite. For now, all she wanted to do was watch the game and feel on top of the world for bring some justice to her late mother's horrific past encounters with Lucius Malfoy. _'I hope you're watching this from heaven. I'll make Lucius Malfoy wish he had never thought about attacking you at all.'_Lullaby noticed that Viktor Krum was closing in on the Snitch and that even if he did catch it, Ireland would still win.

And sure enough, not even a minute later, Krum caught the Snitch and ended the game, which had gone on for nearly two hours. Both teams' supporters bursted out cheering, the Irish supporters because they won, and the Bulgarian supporters because Krum managed to catch the Snitch, using a very complicated and amazing technique.

As the group left the stadium, Lullaby and Lucius locked eyes, and sent courteous nods to each other, letting the other person know that they were going to cooperate on their deal. But somehow, Lullaby had a feeling that the man had a few tricks up his sleeve and would try to find a loophole in the deal. _'Well, two can play at that game. Make the first move, Malfoy. I dare you.'_ Lullaby felt a tug on her arm and turned to face Harry, who was looking at her in concern.

"Don't worry about a thing, Harry. Trust me on this. I know Ministry politics very well. He doesn't know who he's dealing with. One wrong move on his part and Azkaban will have a blue-blood to _not_ spoil."

Harry turned to face Ron and Hermione with a confused look on his face. He had no idea what Lullaby Dream Lupin was planning, but he had a feeling he would find out soon enough.


	15. Explainations and Mayhem

Once the group arrived at the campsite, the five girls, Harry, and Ron entered their tent silently after Lullaby told the other six males to meet them in the living room of Lullaby's tent in about five minutes so she could tell them what went on between Lucius Malfoy and herself.

Getting into their nightwear, the girls remained quiet so Lullaby could focus on what she was going to tell them all. And also to let her formulate her course of action, in case if Lucius didn't stick to his end of the deal. Once the others were settled into blankets on the couches or chairs, with hot cocoa in hand, the trio from Winterland left their room and stood in front of the rest of their group.

"I'm sure you all are wondering what happened between Mr. Malfoy and I tonight at the World Cup. I can assure you there is no need to worry. The two of us have made a deal. That's all that happened."

"And what kind of deal was it?"

"Hermione, I simply told him to keep Draco and his friends in line and away from us and our friends. And in return, I wouldn't press charges on him and his three friends for the rape of my mother, and the murder of my unborn older brother. Sure, Minister Fudge heard what I said earlier today, but unless I decide to press charges, he can't do anything."

"Okay, but what if he doesn't keep his end of the deal?"

"Then I have no choice but to bring it up to the Wizengamot. If there's one thing I know about aristocratic pure-bloods, it's that they value their reputations. And Lucius would rather die than have a blemish such as this upon his record and reputation. He actually had the audacity to try and bribe me with money. If anyone's worse than scum in my book, it's be Lucius Malfoy."

Silence.

"So, let me get this straight. You won't bring any of what happened to your mother into the legal light if he keeps the Slytherins off our backs, and civil to boot? Is that all there is to it?"

"That's correct, Harry. Now, in the event that he breaks his word, I will be forced to take him and the other three to the Wizengamot and have them charged for the rape of my mother, as well as the murder of my unborn brother. And then he'll know what it's like to have absolutely no power behind his money, as he will be placed in Azkaban, where they clearly do not adequately indulge their 'guests' finer tastes."

At this, Lullaby, Melody, and Harmony released cheshire cat grins, which kind of scared the rest of their 'family' group. Before Lullaby could continue explaining, however, screams and the loud bangs could be heard all around the campground. As the group quickly moved from the tent, they noticed instantly that most of the other tents were burning to the ground, and several people that, they guessed, were either muggles or muggle-borns were being levitated high above the ground by a large group of people dress in long, ominous, billowing black robes with white masks that looked a lot like skulls.

"Oh my sweet Merlin! Death Eaters! Move, quickly! Bill, Percy, Charlie, take the others and apparate home. I need to help the others in the Ministry sort all of this out. Bill, you take the twins. Charlie, take Ginny and Hermione. Percy, you take Ron and Harry. Harry? Where's Harry? And Lullaby, Harmony, and Melody? Okay, just go and the three of you return quickly. We'll need all the help we can get with this situation."

And with that, Arthur took off in the direction of the Death Eaters, closely followed by Amos Diggory, Ludo Bagman, and Barty Crouch. After watching their father leave, the Weasley children, and Hermione, apparated back to the Burrow, where Molly was too stunned to say anything or notice that they were five people short, and that included her husband.

Meanwhile, Harry and the girls ran behind the trees along the edge of the woods, quickly working their way around the large group of black-clad torturers so they could do a sneak attack. Their plan had been created by Lullaby, who, after all, had the master's belt in martial arts and could easily take out three or four of the Death Eaters in a matter of seconds. Just as they were closing in on their destination, the large mass of black clothing disapparated, leaving a burning and demolished campground behind. They noticed that the Ministry officials were confused by what had happened and begun making their way to the people that needed immediate medical attention.

It was only a few minutes after the officials were busy with taking care of the injured that a man, who was apparently only a few yards away from the small group, called out a muffled-sounding spell that sent a flash of green into the sky. Before they could get a good glimpse of the man, he disapparated, letting the quartet fall prey to the questioning of the Ministry officials. It was then that Arthur turned up and stopped the interrogations before they got out of hand.

"They're kids, for goodness sake. I seriously doubt any of them conjured the Dark Mark. Harry wouldn't have, since he is opposing You-Know-Who. And the girls couldn't have done it, seeing as how they grew up in America and only heard some of the stories but not any details."

"Arthur, please understand that these four were found in the general location that the Mark was summoned from. If none of them did it, then who did?"

"Mr. Crouch, sir, there was a man standing only a few yards away from us. I don't think he saw us, but in case he did, he obviously apparated to a safer location and let us take the blame for this."

Turning, Barty Crouch looked at Lullaby.

"And your name was what, again?"

"Lullaby Dream Lupin, Mr. Crouch, sir."

"Well, Miss Lupin, if that's true, then you wouldn't mind us checking your wands for the last spells used, now would you?"

Lullaby handed Crouch her wand and told him very seriously that she didn't truly believe in fighting using magic, and that by summoning the Mark was a show of servitude toward something evil. And that the evilest thing that she had ever done was pull a pretty rotten, but funny, prank on her Uncle Nick, Melody and Harmony's father. The other three did the same with their wands. After a minute of waiting for the verdict, all four wands were returned to them, along with an apology, which was accepted and forgiven.

After that, the four students walked back to their tents to pack up and return home, with Arthur lecturing them on how irresponsible it was that they had run off that way. And once the man was out of hearing range, Lullaby leaning in towards the other three.

"Yeah, it was pretty irresponsible, but it was still so much fun. Too bad I didn't get to use my muggle fighting skills tonight to teach them a lesson. The Dark Lord wouldn't seem as big of a threat as me when I get going on my martial arts."

With a smirk, she returned to taking down her tent while Melody and Harmony went to help Arthur with his tent. Harry simply stayed where he was, almost not believing what Lullaby had just said. _'She actually enjoyed that? What is she, insane? Oh, well, I still love her. You can definitely tell that she's the daughter of a marauder.'_Noticing that the others were ready to leave, and that Bill and Percy had returned to help bring them back to the Burrow. Charlie had stayed at home to protect the family, if an attack were to break out near there. So far, the day had been filled with so much excitement that Harry was ready to hit the sack the moment he landed with Bill and Lullaby outside of the Burrow. After Molly had looked them all over to make sure that they were okay, she sent them straight up to bed. The night of the full moon had turned out to be exhaustingly eventful, not only for Remus' transformation, but also with what happened at the World Cup. The Daily Prophet was going to have a field day with that story.


	16. Time For A Little Troublemaking

Somehow, Harry was not surprised by the headlines for the Daily Prophet the next morning. To be honest, no one else in the house was shocked, either, since it had been predicted by them all. And it was written by the one woman that Arthur swears is the female, gossiping version of the devil.

_**Trouble and Mayhem at the Quidditch World Cup!**_

_In the late hours of yesterday evening, dark wizards, commonly known as 'Death Eaters', began terrorizing the many witches and wizards that turned up for the four-hundred and twenty-second Quidditch World Cup. Not only was property damaged by these evil-doers, the owner of the campgrounds, a muggle man by the name of Mr. Benjamin Roberts, his wife, Laurel, and their two young children, daughter Amelia, and son Samuel, were hung upside-down in mid-air and tortured by these masked villains. After what seemed to be hours, but was only about twenty minutes, this masked group disapparated only moments before the Dark Mark appeared over the campground. Ministry officials have given very few details, releasing only that they had very tight security and that everyone that attended the World Cup was proved to not be a Death Eater. Rumors that several bodies were removed from the forest surrounding the campgrounds have yet to be confirmed by the Ministry. It was confirmed, however, that Harry Potter, defeater of You-Know-Who, was seen in the field only meters from the edge of the tree line, surrounded by three young ladies, who have yet to be identified, and that the small group was accused by Mr. Bartemius Crouch to have conjured the Dark Mark. As to whether the allegations are true or not have yet to be revealed._

_Written by Rita Skeeter, Daily Prophet Reporter_

"As you lot can see, Skeeter doesn't like to be left out of the loop and will sink as low as to write lies in a story that she doesn't have the information about. Blasted woman! Poor Barty, having to deal with the reporters for the next how many days, sorting this all out. And don't worry, everyone. Not a single body was discovered in the woods or on the campgrounds. Well, I best be off. See you tonight, Weasley's, and Hermione, since I'm fairly certain that Harry will be returning to Lupin Cottage before I return."

And with that, Arthur and Percy floo'd to the Ministry of Magic, and to the hoards of reporters and civilians wanting to know what really happened. For the two Weasley men, it was going to be a long, exhausting day.

Molly then went about cleaning up the kitchen, starting with the breakfast dishes, while the rest of the Weasley family, and their guests, went outside to the apple orchard for a _nice, calm, friendly _game of quidditch, which Hermione refereed from the safety of the ground. Bill, Fred, George, Ron, and Harry were on one team, while Charlie, Melody, Harmony, Ginny, and Lullaby were on the other.

Now, by nice, I mean rough, by calm, I mean intense, and by friendly, I mean brutal. Since each team was technically two players short, they only had one Beater and two Chasers per team. There was no mercy from either side, especially not from Lullaby's team.

After playing quidditchfor nearly three hours, the group finally landed next to Hermione, waiting, none too patiently, for her to tally up the scores. After five minutes of calculating each teams' score, she finally looked up.

"Well, I never thought I'd see the day where Harry got his Seeker butt kicked by a girl. Lullaby's team: 300 points. Harry's team: 150 points. It was tied until Lullaby caught the Snitch."

Lullaby turned to face her close friends, practically her sisters, a satisfied smirk on her features.

"You know what this means, right, girls?"

Melody answered before Harmony could even come up with an idea of what it could mean.

"The three of us are going down to the little town, Ottery St. Catchpole, to the ice cream shop to celebrate. You told us that if we win, we were going to treat ourselves. A very rare occasion where we betray our strict diets of lean meat, low fat dairy, organic produce, and plenty of grains."

"Correct, Mel. Har- Hello! Earth to Harmony!"

"Huh? What?"

Shaking her head, Lullaby told Harmony that the three of them were going to get ice cream as a victory prize, so to speak. Upon hearing the word ice cream, Harmony started running to the house to change into a more comfortable, and less flashy, outfit. Lullaby and Melody were hurrying after her, with the rest of the group walking leisurely behind, confused beyond all reason as to why the girls had decided that they would need a 'victory prize'.

By the time the Weasley children, plus Harry and Hermione, arrived at the house, the female trio exited the house wearing identical outfits, with the exception being that the shirts were different colors. Black denim, pleated mini-skirts that reached mid-thigh and were paired with sparkly black flip-flips, and small, glittery black shoulder bags with their first names embroidered on the fronts. Their shirts were super tight, glittery halter tops that zipped and hooked in the back and showed about an inch of their stomachs. Harmony's was magenta, Melody's was indigo, and Lullaby's was plum.

All three had their hair brushed down, with perfect side parts, and simple sparkly black barrettes holding the thin side back, while the thicker side hung over half their faces. They had decided to leave their make-up and jewelry the way it had been that morning, which shocked the rest of the people at the Burrow.

About ten minutes after the trio left, Bill and Charlie went up to the room they had been staying in so they could pack, since they were going to be leaving the next morning after breakfast. Fred and George went to their room to make sure the girls hadn't messed with their practically prank supplies. Ginny pulled Hermione into her room, which Hermione stayed in when she was there, talking a mile a minute, making suggestions on hair styles she thought would look amazing on Hermione. That left Ron and Harry to wander up to their room for a bit of relaxation time, or in Ron's case, nap time, before the girls returned for lunch.

Four hours had passed before Lullaby and the twins reentered the Burrow, carrying shopping bags filled with gifts for everyone: twelve new skeins, or rolls, of yarn and three new sets of knitting needles for Molly, muggle chemistry sets and a book called 'The Rules of Pranking and Practical Joking' for Fred and George, an assortment of electronic handheld games for Arthur, a large make-up kit for Ginny, a PDA for Percy, a genuine dragon-skin leather jacket, with buttons made from dragon teeth, for Charlie, a very rare protection amulet called the Udjat, or the Eye of Horus, from Egypt for Bill, and three large boxes of assorted chocolates, truffles, and bon-bons for Ron.

For Hermione, they got her a journal with a lock and key, several puzzle books, like Sudoku, Word Search, and Crosswords, and a few romance novels that were current best-sellers in the United States. They weren't going to give the presents to everyone until they about, which, they hoped, wouldn't be until after Arthur and Percy returned from work. Harry was going to receive gifts after he returned to Lupin Cottage with Lullaby and the twins.

"Where have you three been, Lullaby? You were gone for around four hours. I was ready to have Mrs. Weasley fire-call one of the Aurors to start a search party for you."

Embracing an over-dramatic Harry, Lullaby explained that after getting ice cream, they wanted to do a bit of shopping, so they flagged down the knight bus, and headed to The Leaky Cauldron, from which they headed out into muggle London to get about half of the gifts they had bought before they had lunch at The Leaky Cauldron. After lunch, they wandered into Diagon Alley and finished the rest of their gift shopping, and from there, they decided to stop at Madam Malkin's Robe Shop and purchase a few sets of uniforms each for Hogwarts. And a quick trip, using the Floo Network, helped them to purchase Bill's gift from an elderly Egyptian witch, who was a direct descendant of one of Pharaoh Seti the First's priests.

When she finished the tale about her shopping adventure, it was nearly supper time, and Lullaby noticed that her father was standing in the kitchen, talking with Molly, with a disappointed look upon his face. When Remus turned to look at her and saw that she was watching him, he motioned for her to join him and Molly in the kitchen, which she did without hesitation. Lullaby had figured that she was in trouble for several things, like taking off during the Death Eaters' 'rally', taking off on a shopping trip, and her personal favorite: giving Draco Malfoy what she felt the spoiled brat deserved.

"I thought I told you to behave and to listen and do what Molly and Arthur tell you, young lady."

Uh-oh, now she knew she was really in trouble. No 'mi angelito', 'princess', or even her name. 'Young lady' was the term her mother used when she got in trouble at school, which had been extremely often. No simple 'I'm sorry' was going to get her out of this one.

"I know that, Daddy, but you got hear my side of the story."

Crossing his arms, Remus looked at his daughter.

"Molly told me that Arthur reported you having punch Draco Malfoy in the face before firmly planting your knee into his stomach. Your side to that?"

"He had it coming to him, Daddy. He thought I was joking when I told him that Mother had been the Minister of Magic in the United States Ministry, and that she had been muggle-born. He started laughing, and even as far as to call her a 'mudblood'."

Lullaby spat out the last word like it had been made of poison, scrunching her face up as she did so.

"That's no excuse for physically attacking him, Lullaby. Now, how about the report of you taking off after the Death Eaters showed up?"

Lullaby had no problem looking Remus in the eye and telling him what happened the night before.

"Harry, Harmony, Melody, and myself ran along the inside of the tree line. Out of sight, out of mind, right? Well, we were going to do a sneak attack. Martial arts mixed with magic, you know. But they disapparated before we could get much farther than a few feet from the trees, heading towards them. I may be young, but I knew what I was doing."

Stunned for only a few moments, Remus regathered his thoughts before bringing up the finally problem.

"Okay, so where did the three of you disappear to earlier today?"

A smirk.

"Why, shopping, Daddy. After ice cream, of course. My team beat Harry's team this morning at quidditch, and I told Melody and Harmony that we'd go get ice cream if we won, which we did. Then we decided to do some shopping, so we rode the knight bus to The Leaky Cauldron, and when shopping in London for a while before heading back to the pub for lunch, then into Diagon Alley to finish shopping. However, we did make one other stop. We used the Floo Network to go to Egypt. We got everyone gifts, but we needed to go to Egypt to get Bill's, since that's the only place to purchase the kind we got him."

Remus just stared at her. He didn't think that she was actually as big of a troublemaker as he had been told. At that moment, Arthur and Percy apparated into the living room, where everyone was, with the exception of Remus, Lullaby, and Molly. Lullaby started walking back to the living room, but stopped in the doorway and looked over her shoulder.

"I want to give everyone their gifts before we leave, Daddy. Come and see what I got you, Molly."

Once everyone was sitting, Lullaby passed around everyone's gift to the rightful receiver. Hermione blushed a very deep red when she saw the covers for the romance novels, and Molly was ecstatic about the knitting supplies. Ron was silent for once, since he had rather large boxes of assorted delicacies in front of him, and didn't know what to say or do. Ginny was over the moon for the make-up and was hell-bent on giving Hermione a massive make-over that night. Fred and George thanked the girls before running up to their room to play with the chemicals in their chemistry sets. Charlie was stunned by the extremely expensive jacket that the girls had given him, while Bill couldn't believe that Lullaby, Melody, and Harmony would go all the way to Egypt just to get him such a rare, and important, gift.

While Harmony was helping Percy figure out how to use his new Personal Digital Assistant or 'PDA' as they explained to him, Melody was assisting Arthur with the muggle games, and Lullaby kept telling Harry and her father that they were going to have to wait until they got home before they got their presents. When Molly got up to start dinner, Remus announced that he was going to be taking his 'pack of wild animals' home and that he'd try to stop in again before school started. As they entered the Weasley's fireplace and exited at Lupin Cottage, Harmony, Melody, and Harry took off for the backyard, wanting to get the tent set up before Lullaby realised that they had it and she didn't.

"Daddy, I even got something for Padfoot. Oh, hi, Paddy. I missed you. Did you miss me? I bet you did. Come on, let's go find the others so I can give you all your gifts."

They searched the whole inside of the cottage, but didn't find the three missing teens. That is, until they heard laughter coming from outside. And sure enough, there they were, out by the tent. Melody and Harmony were trying to teach Harry some martial arts moves, but they were failing to do so, especially since Harry's mind was elsewhere, namely what his gift from Lullaby could possibly be.

"Okay, I think we've figured out that you're unteachable in art of physical, hand-to-hand combat. Hey, Remus, Lullaby. Hi, Padfoot. So, are we going to give them their gifts now, or what, Lulls?"

"That's why we came looking for you, Melody. Everybody, in the tent. On the double, move it, move it, move it."

Once they were situated enough for Lullaby, she handed everyone a gift. To her father, all the ingredients, in the right proportions, and the instructions, to make the potion that he needed to have for the full moon. She had bought enough of everything to help Remus make it through the next six full moons. Harry received a custom stationary set that had the name 'Potter' written on the top, a complete yoga/workout set, a simple cd player and calming music for meditating, and a broom servicing kit.

She gave Melody and Harmony scented candles, bath oils and salts, incense, and stuff from Bath and Body Works, like lotion, body wash, bubble bath, body spray, or mist, and other such pleasantries. Sitting on the floor, she held out a basket full of squeaky toys, tugging rope bones, and some of those bones that dogs love to chew on. She wrapped her arms around him and whispered that she had more but couldn't give them to him until the twins were gone with their parents again.

After supper, everyone got ready for bed, wished each other a good night and sweet dreams, before finally falling asleep after such a long, busy day. Lullaby knew her dad was still upset with her, and that he'd most likely ground her in the morning, but she was okay with that since she knew he would be okay for the full moons after she left for Hogwarts. What she didn't know was that the twins were going to be leaving sooner than she would've liked.


	17. Midnight Surprises

A few hours before her alarm was due to go off, Lullaby woke with a start after hearing a rustle coming from the trees right outside of the tent. Slowly, she crept as quietly as she could toward the entrance of the tent. Stopping every ten steps to listen for the sounds, which appeared to be moving from the back of the tent to the front, Lullaby used the more helpful traits, such as her enhanced hearing and excellent vision, that she had inherited from Remus to track the movements. As she was about to throw open the door of the tent, she was pulled backward by her bathrobe, which was caught in Padfoot's jaws. Before she could start yanking her robe free from the dog's mouth, her father stepped out of the room that the men were sleeping in, and motioned for her to be quiet and to quickly wake the others.

Moving as quickly and silently as possible, Lullaby moved to her room, and placed her hands over Harmony and Melody's mouths, waking them, and whispering to be quiet. She motioned for the twins to follow her into the other bedroom to wake up Harry. Once everyone inside the tent was awake and alert, Remus quietly told them that there was only two people walking around the tent, whether they were friendly or not was unknown, and that they were walking around the tent in two separate directions, heading for the same destination: the front opening of the tent.

Sirius, still in his animagus form, softly growled when the intruders stopped moving only a few feet from the door. Turning around, Remus aimed his wand towards the entrance, and told the four teenagers to quickly hide in the bathroom and to lock the door, before slowly stepping closer in the direction of the two mysterious people. However, before the teens reached the bathroom, one of the people started whispering to the other, and every word had been caught by the inhabitants of the tent.

"Are you sure this is the right place, dear? And why would they be sleeping out here after what happened at the Quidditch World Cup?"

A sigh from outside and two soft gasps from inside could just barely be heard by Remus, Sirius, and Lullaby.

"I'm positive that this is the right place, love. The house is too small for four people to sleep comfortably, hence the reason for camping out. Now, let's just check and see if they're in there."

Harmony and Melody looked at one another before running over to the door and throwing it open. Immediately, they were embraced by the two people that were outside. Before Remus could blink, the twins brought the two intruders into the tent, and Lullaby turned a few of the lanterns on so that they could have some light.

"Daddy, we were worried about nothing. It's just Melody and Harmony's mom and dad. Lord Nicholai Nikols, and his wife, Lady Bethany Nikols. Auntie Beth, Uncle Nick, I am proud to introduce my father, Remus Lupin, my boyfriend, Harry Potter, and Padfoot, a very special member of my family."

Momentarily stunned, it took Remus a few moments to register the fact that he was supposed to shake hands with Nick and Beth. And while Remus was off in his own world for a few moments, Harry stepped forward and shook Nick's hand before greeting Beth warmly.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, sir. And positively wonderful to see you again, ma'am. I apologize for the ambush Remus had been preparing for. We thought that the two of you were Death Eaters."

"Quite alright, son. We know that we shouldn't've been sneaking around in the middle of the night, but we are finally all moved into our new home, and Beth couldn't stand being away from the girls any longer, so we can to get them. And over in the States, they would've been up and working out right now, or possibly just finishing up and getting ready for breakfast. We completely forgot about the time difference, and we do apologize."

By now, Remus had broken out of his stupor and begun speaking.

"It's quite alright, Lord Nikols. It's just that with what happened at the World Cup, we're all on edge. And with Death Eaters still out there, Harry needs to be protected, leaving us to be suspicious of everyone, especially if they're sneaking around in the middle of the night. Please, stay the night. There's only one bedroom in the house, unless you want to sleep out here with us. Men in one room, and women in the other. I had to do that after I found Lullaby and Harry snuggled up in the same sleeping bag the first night that Melody and Harmony were here."

At that, both Bethany and Nicholai turned to stare at the sweet little angel they had known since infancy, disbelieving that she would do something like that. They knew that the only boy that she had been very close to had been her captain on her Quidditch team at Winterland, and that was only on a friendly basis. No, their little angel would never do such a thing. It just wasn't the way she was. Now that they were looking right at her, though, they noticed that she was standing extremely close to Harry, holding his hand, both red in the face, and looking at the ground. Shaking her her head, Bethany turned to face Remus.

"I knew it was going to happen soon enough after she brought him with her a week and a half ago. I just wished and prayed that Lizzie's baby girl would always stay the same child she had been when she was growing up. But, unfortunately, time never stops, and people do change."

"Yeah, sad truth, that. It time did stop my daughter from growing up, I would've been able to watch her grow up."

Silence engulfed the tent before the adults noticed that Melody and Harmony were asleep, once again, leaning against their father, drooling on his jacket, and slouching to the point where they were about to fall to the ground, and Harry was cradling Lullaby as she slowly nodded off yet again. Remus opened his mouth to say something, but Nicholai beat him to it.

"Well, I think we should all get to bed. Beth and I shall take you up on your offer, Remus. Now, Beth, you can come and take Melody, I'll take Harmony, and Harry clearly has Lullaby."

Just as Harry laid Lullaby down and moved to cover her back up, Lullaby reached out and pulled him down beside her, and cuddled as close as she could without casing him to die of asphyxiation. Nick laid his daughter down and moved to carefully release Harry from his 'prison', but in the span of only a few moments, Harry had fallen asleep, clutching onto Lullaby at tightly as she was holding him. Shaking his head, Nick went back out to where Remus was standing next to the big, black dog that Lullaby had called Padfoot.

"Harry won't be joining us in the 'mens' bedroom this evening. Lullaby pulled him down and they both fell asleep in a matter of seconds. You don't need to worry, though. Beth is sleeping in there. Everything is fine."

Remus then nodded his agreement, and started heading towards the room that he slept in, but stopped in the doorway and motioned for Sirius to go lay next to Lullaby, silently telling him to wake him up if the two teens silently start anything, though Sirius knew that they wouldn't with so many people in the same room, or even if they were alone. Sirius knew that his friend was just being the stereotypical paranoid father, with a young teenage daughter and her boyfriend cuddled up in the same room.

The moment Padfoot laid down on the other side of Lullaby, the girl released Harry and turned to lightly embrace Sirius, cuddling the side of her face into the fur on the back of his neck. The only thing that the occupants had to worry about now was Lullaby's alarm going off in about three and a half hours, and all because the girls weren't going to miss their early morning work-out.


	18. Morning With The Nikols'

Remus woke up at a quarter past four in the morning to the sound of Sirius barking at Lullaby's new musical alarm clock that plays _'A Whole New World'_once through before going into snooze mode for five minutes, then plays again. Clearly Sirius hadn't been told about the alarm clock. Groaning, Remus opened his sleeping bag and slowly got up, only to be stopped by Nicholai Nikols, whom he completely forgot had showed up last night, with his wife, to pick up their daughters.

Chuckling, Nick spoke to Remus with his eyes still closed.

"I take it you still aren't used to Lullaby getting up this early."

"Heh, you got that right. What's the reason for the girls getting up this early anyway?"

Yawning, Nick replied.

"Oh, they always get up this early for their morning work-outs. The weather does not stop these girls from keeping themselves perfectly fit, so don't think that you'll have the power to do so."

Remus just nodded and walked through the tent's living room and into the kitchen to fix some coffee.

Carrying a tray with three mugs of coffee, a bowl of sugar, and a small container of cream, Remus was met by the strangest scene in his life. Nick and Beth were both sitting on the couch, chatting with their daughters, and Lullaby. Harry was still waking up, using the method of stretching his body in every possible direction. Sirius was bouncing around over by the door, waiting to leave with the girls, and apparently Harry, for their work-out. The girls were dressed in their near-matching outfits of black with their signature colors of pink, blue, and purple. Harry's outfit was a mix between Melody and Lullaby's, since Melody wore pants, and Lullaby wore a short-sleeved t-shirt, under which Harry wore a black beater. While the girls either had stars, hearts, or flowers, Harry had, oddly enough, lightning bolts. Upon the black of Harry's outfit was a bright shade of acidic green.

"Morning, Daddy. We'll be back in about three hours, okay? See you later, Uncle Nick, Aunt Beth. Come on, Padfoot, time to go."

After the four teenagers, and Padfoot, left the tent, Remus set the tray down on the coffee table before collapsing onto the couch. Beth simply giggled her amusement before adding cream and sugar to her coffee. Nick only added cream to his.

"You know, Remus, she wont be working out for so long after Mel and Harmony come home with us today. In pairs, they spar for fifteen minutes each. Mel has to keep a steady pace since she has asthma, but Harmony and Lullaby are simply unstoppable, one day, their sparring movements were so fast, I almost didn't see them. And if Harry is the same way, then Lullaby will most likely be ready for a nap around noon or so."

"Yeah, our kids are pretty determined to stay in shape. Harmony keeps saying that they just want to be prepared for anything. And after what happened to Lizzie when she was only fifteen, I'd have to agree that the girls need to prepare themselves. And, hypothetically, if their wands get knocked out of their hands in the middle of battle or something, they'll need a way to defend themselves."

Remus nodded. He knew all to well that he wouldn't be at the school to protect his daughter, and if Draco Malfoy was anything like his father, Lullaby would need to protect herself from him and every other male in the school.

The three adults continued to sit and chat while they had no distractions in the form of four teenagers and a dog. Nicholai told Remus his plans for petitioning for the World Rights for Werewolves, and Remus was impressed. It certainly seemed that Lord Nikols knew what he was doing when it came to justice and politics. Bethany explained that she was Lizzie's Mediwitch the day she had gone into labor with Lullaby.

"My boss, coworkers, and even Nick were worried about me working during the last month of my own pregnancy, but as I kept telling them, If I was at work when I went into labor myself, it would actually be less of a hassle in the long run. And sure enough that's what had happened, only a week after I helped Lizzie deliver her daughter. I have been friends with Lizzie since then, and our daughters are practically triplets in the way they act sometimes, not to mention the fact that they are only a week apart. Believe it or not, Remus, Lullaby had light tawny hair and golden brown eyes when she was born. They changed to what they are now on her first Christmas, when she was nearly six months old. She was a mini version of you, now that I've seen what you look like."

"Lizzie never sent pictures from her first year. Never told me about how my daughter looked when she was born. Oh, well, it happens, I guess. So, are you going to be working at St. Mungo's now that you live here in Great Britain, Beth?"

Standing up and gathering the coffee cups on the tray, Beth answered Remus with a smile.

"Actually, I'll be working alongside Madam Poppy Pomfrey in the Hogwarts infirmary. Don't let Harry or Lullaby know, but this year, at Hogwarts, the Ministry has decided to have the Triwizard Tournament. Headmaster Dumbledore offered me the position for more than my abilities. There will be a lot more students running about the grounds, the champions to tend to after the tasks, and I want to make sure the girls get settled. Now, if you'll excuse me, Remus, I've got to start on breakfast. The children will be back in about twenty minutes, then the girls will be out of the shower in fifteen minutes, five minute showers each, then Harry, and getting dressed."

Remus followed Beth into the kitchen, with Nick right behind him.

"Exactly what do they eat for breakfast, or would it better if I don't know?"

Nick answered instead of his wife.

"It varies. Today, the girls want what we call 'Rainbow Fruit Salad', which has sliced strawberries, mandarin orange slices, sliced bananas, cubed kiwi's, blueberries, and grapes. That, and banana bran muffins, with a side of low-fat raspberry yogurt and optional oat crumbs. For drinks, Harry suggested raspberry iced tea slushies and Orange Julius'. With the girls, breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and should be the healthiest."

Just as Beth placed the last batch of bran muffins in the oven, and began chopping the fruits, padfoot ran into the tent, barking his head off, jumping in excitement, followed only moments later by three giggling girls and a groaning Harry. Melody poked her head into the kitchen a few moments later, still laughing her butt off.

"Mom, I think you have a job out here. Poor Harry got his butt kicked by three girls in three different sparring matches, and on the way back, Padfoot knocked him over from behind. Bumps, bruises, cuts, and a broken wrist from his fall, which was from Padfoot."

Giving her husband and Remus orders to continue making breakfast and when to remove the muffins, Beth moved out to the living room to 'fix' Harry so he would be as good as new. Working as carefully and quickly as she could, Beth healed all twenty cuts, twelve large, visible bumps, eighteen dark purple bruises, a broken left wrist, and two fractured ribs that she had located on Harry's body. Shaking her head, she sent him to take a shower now that the girls were done and were getting dressed.

The atmosphere upon entering the kitchen was so very like entering a police station interrogation room, or so Beth thought.

"What was the damage that the girls inflicted onto poor Harry?"

"Twenty cuts, twelve bumps, eighteen bruises, a broken wrist, and two fractured ribs. The wrist was the only thing from the dog. Like Nick said, Remus, the girls are ruthless when it comes to sharpening their hand-to-hand combat moves. I'm just surprised it wasn't more than what was there. I honestly think that they could take you out in your werewolf form. Anyway, breakfast in ten minutes, so the girls should be happy, though I'm extremely sure that Harry will want to sit between the two of you, especially after what the girls put him through this morning."

In the girls' bedroom, the girls were getting dressed into completely different outfits. Melody was in a ankle-length, sky-blue sundress, with a lacy white cardigan, and simple white flip-flops. Harmony was wearing tight, hot pink, flared jeans, with a black tank top, and black flip-flops with hot pink gems on them. Lullaby was wearing a violet purple, knee-length gypsy skirt, a light grey, cap-sleeved peasant blouse and plain grey flip-flops. All three of them left their hair down, which would be a surprise for everyone outside of the bedroom.

In the bathroom, Harry was just getting dress in simple pair of black jeans with a maize-colored t-shirt, a blood red zip-up hoodie, and black tennis shoes. He decided to use the hair gel that Lullaby had gotten for him, and spiked his hair up, after he trimmed a couple of inches off. Checking out his reflection in the mirror, he decided that he looked very good, despite the fact that he was a bit short and severely underweight for a male of his age. A knock on the door brought him out of his stupor, dragging him back to the real world. Nick called for him and said that breakfast was ready and that the girls were already having a hayday in the kitchen.

Upon entering the kitchen, Harry found that not only were the girls having a blast with breakfast, but the adults were as well, and Sirius, too. Watching Melody lean over Lullaby to flick a spoonful of the yogurt at Harmony, and harmony throwing a few grapes right back at Melody, while Lullaby leaned back, using a skewer to make a rainbow fruit kabob, Harry thought that this morning would make a very interesting series of pictures if he had a camera. Remus handed Harry a tray that he had made up before the girls entered the kitchen, knowing that Harry might not end up getting breakfast at all.

"Thanks, Remus. You know, if I had a camera, I could fill a whole photo album with pictures just from this morning. You should come with us tomorrow morning, be the referee in case Lullaby decides to give me a few more broken bones or a couple of fresh cuts and bruises. By the way, I know that Nicholai will working in our Ministry, but what about Bethany? Will she be working at St. Mungo's Hospital?"

Beth just turned to look at Harry with a smile on her face.

"Actually, Harry, I will be working with Poppy in the Infirmary at the school. Albus offered me the position in person, just two days before you and Lullaby dropped in to pick up my daughters. Poppy wants to find someone to work under her for about five to ten years before she retires. I've spoken with her, as well. She has told me that you're the one who spends the most time in the Infirmary, Harry. Somehow, I actually believe her about that."

Melody and Harmony spit out their sips of iced tea.

"WHAT!?! Our mother working at the school? How embarrassing! Please, we beg of you, don't treat us like we're your children. We just happen to have the same last name."

Bethany and Remus threw their hands up to their ears to block out the outburst, while Lullaby, Harry, and Nicholai burst out laughing. Sirius was barking obnoxiously over in the corner, jumping in excitement.

"Hey, Uncle Nick, do you think that all of us could go to Diagon Alley to pick up our school supplies before you and Aunt Beth take Melody and Harmony home?"

"Actually, we were planning on getting the girls' supplies a few days before school."

"Aw, Dad, come on. The sooner we have the books, the sooner you can make sure we're occupied. Not to mention that Dumbledore said that we needed dress robes for this year. That means shopping in muggle London for the best ones that we can find."

Running his hand over his face and into his hair, Nick sighed.

"Fine. We'll go today. Your mother and I just figured that we'd all spend more time together for the next two to three weeks, and that you wouldn't have every book for this school read before term starts."

Lullaby, Harmony, and Melody started to jump up and down, cheering and giggling like crazy. Two shopping trips two days in a row? Could there be anything better for three teenage girls? If there was, the trio couldn't think of one.

After everyone finished eating, Lullaby washed all of the dishes before joining the three adults, her boyfriend, her best friends, and Padfoot out in the living room, where they sat around, trying to decide the order of their stops in Diagon Alley and muggle London. They waited another two hours before heading to the cottage's fireplace, where, one by one, they Floo'd to the Leaky Cauldron. Waving quickly to Tom, the owner of the pub, the group headed out the back door to open the entrance to Diagon Alley.


	19. Shopping Spree!

Despite the fact that it was noon, Diagon Alley was relatively quiet, with only about thirty or so people going about their business as quickly as possible. The events that happened after the World Cup left everybody wary of leaving their homes, and families, for very long. Harry couldn't think of a single time, since entering the Wizarding World, when Diagon Alley had such a foreboding feel to it. Even Remus knew that Diagon Alley had never been like this during the Dark Lord's reign thirteen years before, so why would it be this way now? Just because some Death Eaters had wanted the Ministry to know that they were still around? It just didn't make any sense in his mind. The only people that didn't think anything of the scarcity of shoppers in Diagon Alley were the Nikols' and Lullaby, all of whom had never been there before, or for longer than ten minutes.

Their first stop was Gringotts, where the four students each took out two-hundred gold galleons, one-hundred silver sickles, and one-hundred bronze knuts. After that, the group stopped at Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions. After being remeasured, Harry wandered over to where the adults sat waiting. Lullaby, Melody, and Harmony were complaining about having to wear uniforms here, when you didn't have to wear them at Winterland, as long as you dressed appropriately. After nearly half an hour, the girls reappeared from the backroom, where they had been measured, and joined the adults to wait for their new school robes to be finished and brought out for them. Five sets of robes for each student were levitated out of the backroom an hour later behind Madam Malkin, who couldn't believe that she had to do all of the work by herself, and all because her three assistants were to scared to leave their homes.

"Okay, here you go. That'll be ten galleons from each of you." The four students paid her and grabbed their purchases. "Thank you. Have a nice day, and do be safe."

Everyone nodded to Madam Malkin before exiting the shop, heading for Flourish and Blott's book shop, stopping once so Harry could kneel down and retie his sneakers. By the time they reached the book shop, there wasn't a soul out on the street. The people had either quickly retreated to their homes or had taken refuge in one of the shops, peering out of the shop windows and doors before deciding whether or not they should dare to venture out once more.

In the past, whenever Harry entered the book shop, there would almost no room to move because of all the people crowding the rows. Today, there were, maybe six other people in the shop, browsing through the many books, trying to find the one they want. It seemed unreal, like a dream, to Harry.

The small group of students went through the shop, locating their required books before heading to the upstairs floor, where the wizarding romance, fantasy, and adventure novels were. Each girl picked out twelve of the romance novels, while Harry picked out the same number of books, just from the adventure section. When they were done, they headed back down to check out their books. Harry only had to pay eight galleons, while the girls each had to pay twelve galleons, because the romance novels had a higher price.

After nearly an hour of shopping in Diagon Alley, the trio of girls, and Harry, were finally ready to go shopping in Muggle London. Remus shrunk both Harry and Lullaby's purchases and had Lullaby place them in her purse. Nick did the same with his daughters' things, as well, but his wife, Beth, put them in her purse. The had decided, after they left Gringotts, that they'd stop for lunch at the Leaky Cauldron before going out into the Muggle part of London.

Tom looked up from what he was doing and smiled at the group. From the moment he met her, Tom thought that Lullaby was a real charming young lady who could turn your most pig-headed comment on you, and leave you stunned into silence. He walked around the end of the bar, carrying menus, and headed over to where the group had seated themselves in the back corner, with Harry seated the farthest away from the patrons of the pub. Letting them know that he'd back in a few minutes to take their orders, Tom left to head back to the bar, where he had a couple of new customers waiting at the bar.

When Tom returned to the back corner, the whole group had decided to order the same thing: spaghetti, with a side of seasoned fried chicken, and for drinks, the females ordered raspberry iced tea, and the guys ordered black coffee. And once their food arrived, the only ones talking were the three new students.

"For our dresses that we need, I think we should go with totally different colors than what we usually wear."

"You know what, Lulls, I completely agree. Since we need them for Christmas, how about red, green, and white?"

"Mel, I think that's perfect, especially for Christmas. Great idea, sis."

"okay, now that we have the colors picked out, time for hairstyle ideas. I'm thinking about going with a french twist. How about you, Harm?"

"Curls pinned to my head, with a few curls hanging down. Mel?"

"Light curls, with one side held off the face by barrettes."

By now, the only ones that were still eating were the girls, but they were halfway done, so it wouldn't take them much longer to finish eating. After about five minutes, Tom came back with the bill and the group paid it before getting up and leaving the nearly empty pub.

Muggle London was busy, despite the fact that it was about two-thirty in the afternoon, on a Monday. They headed three blocks south before coming to an underground train station. Getting on, the waited nearly twenty-five minutes before they finally reached their stop. The first shop they entered in downtown London was for the dresses that the girls wanted to get, and unfortunately for Harry, he needed a tuxedo, which could also be purchased here.

Before trying on the dresses, the girls had already decided on who gets which color: Lullaby would get red, Melody would wear white, and Harmony would take green. Poor Harry knew that whatever they needed these fancy outfits for, he would be Lullaby's date, so he picked a black tux with a white shirt, a red vest, and a red tie, and of course, polished black shoes that just didn't seem to fit Harry's personality.

The first dresses the girls tried on fit each of them perfectly. Lullaby's red gown was mostly simple, with sparkling diamond-like gems covering the straps and making a figure-eight down to the center of her chest.* Harmony's green dress was pretty simple, which wasn't like her at all. It had only one shoulder strap, that looked like a sash wrapping around her once on a small angle.** Melody's gown was white and mostly simple, since it's straps tied in the middle of her back with a strap coming from each side of her ribcage, and there were diamond-like gems across the front of her upper waist-line, as well as where the straps line up with where her arms and shoulders meet.***

After each of the four students paid for their formal clothing, the small group headed for the nearest shoe shop so the girl could pick out shoes to match their dresses. Easy, right? That's what Harry thought, and he couldn't've been more wrong. The girls each tried on ten different pairs of shoes to go with their dresses, but couldn't make up their minds. Finally, after around forty-five minutes, the girls chose the shoes they wanted. Melody decided on a pair of white shoes that had thin straps that were covered in diamond-like gems and had a heart charm dangling from the ankle straps.+ The label on the box said that the style was called _Juliet._ Harmony chose a simple pair of black satin high-heel shoes that covered the back of her heel and had straps that crossed in front of her ankles.++ The style, according to the box, was called _Vegas._Lullaby picked out a pair of silver colored shoes that had straps above the toes that kinda looked like a spider, and had a strap that angled up around to the back of her ankles, and had two straps that connected the front straps to the ankle strap. On the box, it stated the shoe style was called _Sasha_.+++

Finally heading in the direction of home, Harry sighed in relief, now that they were done shopping. Or so he thought. After getting off the underground train once again, he not only noticed that the Nikols family wasn't with them, and that were they two stops away from where he hoped they would be, but that they were in front of a jewelry store called 'Calson Jewelry'. Upon seeing his confused face, Remus quietly explained to Harry that it was Lullaby's idea to come to the jewelry store.

"Hey, are you two coming in or not? I'm pretty sure that you want to get home soon, right? So, let's hurry up in here, then we can head home."

Sighing, Harry and Remus followed Lullaby into the store, and over to the section of the store that had the rings on display. Within moments, Harry had some idea about what was up with them coming to a jewelry store: Lullaby apparently wanted to make sure that no guys would bug her at Hogwarts, and since they were betrothed anyway, there wasn't really a reason for him to actually propose to her.

Hearing an undecided hum to his left, Harry noticed that Lullaby was looking, indecisively, at five rings that were both the same and different, since the metal of the ring was the same, twenty-four carat white gold, and the same number of gems were on each ring, but the different kinds of gems were cut in different styles. Currently in front of her, on the display table, there was a ring with three princess-cut amethysts, a ring had three round-cut rubies, a ring with three emerald-cut emeralds, a ring with three marquise-cut blue sapphires, and a ring with three oval-cut diamonds. The center gems of each ring were three carats, and the two gems that were on the sides were one carat each.

Even after trying each of the rings on, Lullaby still couldn't choose which one she wanted. The sales person behind the counter looked at Remus with her eyebrow quirked, clearly not understanding why such a young girl would be looking at engagement rings at her age.

"Um, excuse me, but if you don't mind my asking, what's going on?"

Remus cleared his throat.

"Ask me no questions, and I'll tell you no lies. Long story short, though, Harry and Lullaby were betrothed since about a month before they were born. Lullaby wants to make sure that she's left alone b all the boys at her new school. She transferring from America."

"Oh, I see, sir. Well, in that case, congratulations, I guess. But why is it only you here with them?"

"My wife died a little over a month ago, and Harry's parents died nearly thirteen years ago."

"Oh. Well, I can understand how they must feel about that. When I was three, my father died, and my mother died a couple of weeks after my high school graduation. In fact, this store has been in my family for the past five generations, on my father's side. My parents worked side by side here, and after my father died, when I was about thirteen, my mother let me help out after school. Got paid, too, so I was able to save up for when I was done with high school. Now I own the store. My father's younger brother's oldest son is a couple of years older than I am, and he works here, as well. When I leave, he'll official own the whole store, since the family wants to keep it on the male side, you know, because of the last name. But that's if I don't have a son outside of marriage, which has never happened in my family. Oh, have you finally decided, dear?"

Turning to look at Harry, lullaby had a great big smile on her face.

"I sure have. While I think they're all beautiful, I'm completely in love with the color purple, so I'll be going with the princess-cut amethysts. My mother's birthstone is sapphire, and Harry and Daddy are both rubies. Diamonds has been classified as a girl's best friend, and the emeralds reminded me of Harry's eyes. But I just can't resist purple."

Harry rolled his eyes at Lullaby's reasons for choosing the rings that she did. He was flattered the she loved his eyes, but the amethysts definitely were her style. He noticed that there was a similar amethyst ring in pure sterling silver. He had a sneaking suspicion that the reason she didn't choose that one was because of the silver-and-werewolf bit in the movies and books. He still didn't know if that concept was true or not, but at least Lullaby was thinking abut her father's feelings on the subject. Suddenly, Harry leaned over and whispered into Remus' ear.

"Um, do you want me to get on my knee and propose properly?"

Taken aback, Remus didn't answer for nearly a minute.

"It's up to you, Harry. But since Lullaby has her digital camera in her purse, I wouldn't mind catching it on the video setting."

Harry nodded his head, and turned back to Lullaby, who was waiting for the jeweler to return with the ring, since they needed to resize it to fit Lullaby's finger.

"Lulls, can I borrow your camera for a couple of minutes?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, go ahead, Harry."

After Lullaby handed him the camera, Harry handed the camera over to Remus after showing him how to switch it to video mode, and start it up. At that moment, the owner of the store came back out with the ring in a small, but gorgeous, purple velvet box. Harry paid for the ring before Lullaby had a chance to argue with him over it. Lullaby was giving him a death glare until her eyes went wide with shock the moment Harry got down on one knee and opened the box, presenting Lullaby with her ring.

"Lullaby, I know that we haven't known each other for very long, and that I don't have to do this since our parents did it for us, but I want to do this right. Lullaby Dream, will you marry me?"

Before Lullaby could answer, however, her eyes began to water a bit, and two little tears escaped from each of her eyes. Smiling brightly, Lullaby pulled harry into a tight embrace, and whispered her answer into his ear.

"Yes."

"What was that, Lulls?"

Pulling away, Lullaby answered him a bit louder.

"I said yes. Yes, Harry, yes!"

As Harry placed the ring on her left hand ring finger, she heard a beep to her right and saw that her dad had her camera, and realised that he had recorded the whole thing so she could have it as one her most precious memories. The sales lady had watched the whole thing and couldn't resist crying a little bit at the display of happiness coming from the young couple.

After a couple more minutes, the small group left the store and _finally_ headed home. Since it was pushing five o'clock in the afternoon, Lullaby decided not to cook tonight, and instead get Italian to go, making sure to get enough so Sirius could have some, too.

By the time they got home, Sirius was back in his normal form, and sitting on the couch, dressed in a pair of Remus' cotton pajama sets, with his hair still wet, indicating that he had just been in the shower not to long before.

"Well, it's about time you got home. I was getting worried."

"Sorry, Siri. It took the girls a long time to pick out their dresses and shoes that they need for Christmas this year."

"Yeah, and Lullaby wanted to make an extra stop after we started heading home."

Lullaby walked into the living room after putting her purchases away in her closet, carrying in the food and some plates and silverware that she picked up from the kitchen.

"Good evening, Uncle Siri. Sorry we were gone for so long. One would think that men would learn not to go shopping with women after the first three stores. But I was kinda glad that Daddy and Harry didn't learn that today. By the way, I hope you like Fettuccine Alfredo with chicken. I didn't feel up to cooking tonight, not mention that it's so late, I wouldn't've had time to make my normal three course meal."

"That's fine, Angelfish."

As he watched Lullaby put the food and dishes on the coffee table, Sirius noticed that she had a ring on her left hand that he was positive hadn't been there when they left this morning. Quirking an eyebrow at Remus and Harry, he silently asked what was going on. And upon seeing Sirius' confused expression, Harry cleared his throat.

"Um, Sirius, I, uh, have something to say. Lullaby's final stop was a jewelry store in London. We've been engaged since before birth, so she wanted a ring to show it. And I actually got down on my knee and properly asked her. Remus recorded it on Lullaby's camera, if you wanna see it."

And with that, Harry turned and ran out of the house and into the tent, locking himself into the men's bedroom. After about five minutes, he heard someone enter the tent, and look into every room in the tent before figuring out that he was hiding in the room had been sleeping in.

"Harry, open up, please. It's Lullaby. Daddy and Uncle Siri are in the living room talking. They sent me out here to see if you're okay. You looked like you had seen a ghost when you ran out of the living room. Come on, Harry. Let me in, now. It's my tent, so let me in. You have until I reach five before I got tell Uncle Siri to eat your portion of dinner. One. Two. Thr-"

"Fine. Come on in. I'm sorry. It's just that I don't like having the spotlight put on me. Plus, I was pretty nervous about how Sirius would react."

"He sends his congratulations to you, Harry. After you left the room, he watched the video, and he started bawling. He said, and I quote, 'I'm so proud of him. They grow up so fast, Remus. James, Lily, and Lizzie are most likely watching them proudly from heaven.' It was actually kinda funny, seeing as how he turned it into a great, big, dramatic production. Now, I think, we should go back in, and eat, then plan tomorrow's events."

Harry nodded and silently followed Lullaby out of the tent and back into the house, with Lullaby slightly dragging him by his hand. When they entered the living room, Sirius stood up and walked over to the couple, and tightly embraced them both, ruffling Harry's hair after letting them go, much to Harry's annoyance.

Dinner was filled with jokes and laughter, stories, and everyday discussions. Until Lullaby took the dirty dishes out to the kitchen and came back with four bowls of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream. Remus looked at Sirius and Harry, and groaned lightly, knowing that ice cream for dessert meant she was going to bring up a subject that one or more of them wasn't going to like, or so Lizzie had let him know a few years before, and he put his money on that person being Harry.

And sure enough, the moment Lullaby opened her mouth to say what was on her mind, she turned to face Harry, her face stone-wall serious.

"Harry, I know how you're going to feel about this but I feel that we really should discuss it. I think that tomorrow, around five-thirty in the evening, we should go to your relative's place, and give them the good news. Plus, we can also let them know that you'll be able to spend most of the summer here next year. They'd most likely be glad to know that they'll only have to deal with you for two weeks for the next three summers."

Harry visibly paled upon hearing Lullaby mention visiting the Dursley's. she had planned it so that his Uncle Vernon would be home from work. _'Someone must really hate me to have cursed me with this.' _Sighing, Harry looked at Lullaby before speaking.

"Lulls, you know how I feel about the Durlsey's. I still remember being locked under the stairs most of my life. But, if it'll make you happy, I'll do it. Just don't expect a warm welcome from them."

"Thank you, Harry. Wait. Your Uncle in Vernon Dursley?" Harry nodded. "Sorry, Uncle Siri, but you'll need to be in your animagus form while we're there."

"Okay, but why, Angelfish?"

"My mother used to live next to the Dursley's went she first moved to Great Britain. Number two, on Privet Drive, in Little Whinging, Surrey. When she graduated from Hogwarts, her parents, my grandparents, moved back to America. She said that Marge and Vernon were horrible to her, but that their parents got along with her parents. It'd be kinda cool to see his reaction when he meets me, the daughter of his childhood neighbor. He'll know that you're not really my mother's brother."

Silence followed for the next five minutes while everyone finished their ice cream. Once they were done eating, the four of them went to get ready for bed. Since Lullaby was now the only girl, Remus allowed Harry to sleep in the same room as her, as long as he slept a minimum of five feet away from her. Turning in at nine-thirty at night was a bit odd for Sirius and Harry, since during school, they stayed up until about midnight or later, even on a school night. But having been woken up at a quarter after four that morning, Harry welcomed the early bedtime, knowing that he'd be getting up early again the next morning, anyway.

Dresses:

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Shoes:

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	20. Getting Ready For Dinner

Remus and Sirius woke up the next morning to the sound of light, but audible, laughter and groans of agony. Looking at one another, the two men rolled their eyes, knowing which of the teens were laughing and which was in pain. Getting out of bed, they headed into the living room of the tent, where they found Harry sitting on the couch, sporting a rather impressive lump on his forehead, a bloody, but not broken, nose, a split bottom lip, and a fair few bruises on both of his forearms. Remus and Sirius burst out laughing at Harry just as Lullaby left the bathroom with her basket of first aid items and a bin of warm water, with a rag, so she could clean up the 'mess' that was Harry before they got ready for the day.

Remus had gone into the kitchen to make breakfast the moment that Lullaby sat down in front of Harry to clean up his injuries, but Sirius stayed in the room, standing behind Lullaby, trying his best to stiffle his laughter over the fact the his godson got his ass kicked by a girl. It was understandable the day before when it had been three girls against him, this morning there was only for him to go up against. The only reason Lullaby beat him was because she did this every morning, whereas Harry had not.

"So, are you looking forward to seeing your relatives today, Harry? I think I know how they'll react. Unfortunately, it might not cause that fat lard of an uncle of yours to have a heart attack. And your cousin might try hitting on Lulls, but hey, the looks on their faces will most definitely be worth it."

Groaning and wincing, Harry answered his godfather's question.

"Sirius, I have never looked forward to seeing the Dursley's at the end of each school year. What makes you think I'd enjoy it now? Apart from their reactions, I mean."

"Yeah, you're right about that. They never seemed to be a jolly bunch."

Remus exited the kitchen at that moment, carrying a tray with two hot peppermint teas, two raspberry iced teas, and four steaming bowls of whole grain oatmeal, topped with fat-free whipped cream and chopped blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries. To Harry, it was simple but perfect. To Lullaby, it was a healthy way to start the day. To Sirius, it was edible, though he would've made himself some coffee instead of tea. And to Remus, it was a nice way for the four of them to spend some quality time together with each other without having Sirius in his animagus form for the first time in over a week.

By lunch time, Lullaby had managed to get Harry to forgive her for 'damaging' him earlier that day. Remus had, per Lullaby's wishes, sent a letter with Harry's owl, Hedwig, to the Dursley's, or more specifically, Petunia Dursley, to let them know that they would be arriving around five-thirty that evening for an important discussion regarding Harry's future. Knowing that even though the family didn't like anything that was 'abnormal', Petunia would most certainly want to keep up appearances for the sake of her neighbors.

Currently, Lullaby and Harry were lounging on a couple of outdoor love-seats that Remus and Sirius had transferred from the gazebo in the garden to the center of the large maze, next to the fountain, each reading one of their news books. Lullaby was reading a newly released romance novel called _Soul Magic_, and Harry had begun reading a dark adventure novel called _The Dark Path_. While Sirius and Remus took turns checking on the teens often throughout the day, neither was really worried that they would do anything inappropriate.

When the group had an hour to get ready before they left for Little Whinging, it was decided that Lullaby would get ready in the house, and the guys would get ready in the tent. Forty-five minutes later, both Harry and Remus were dressed in semi-casual dinner suits, identical except for the tie, which Harry's was a deep royal purple, and Remus' was a silvery-grey color. Sirius almost didn't recognize his godson or his friend since he had never seen them in such attire in the past.

When Lullaby exited the cottage, she was wearing a simple, yet elegant, deep purple satin cocktail dress to match Harry's tie. her shoes were simple satin black peep-toe pumps with four-inch heels and double ankle straps. Her jewelry was simple: a silver chain necklace and bracelet set, silver chandelier earrings, and her engagement ring. Her make-up was made up of glittery purple eyeshadow, black eyeliner and mascara, very pale pink blush, and glossy, light magenta lipstick. Her hair was lightly sprayed with glittery hairspray and was styled into a simple bun.

*** Number Four, Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey ***

Petunia was standing in the kitchen, body trembling slightly, staring at the parchment in her hand. She was grateful that Vernon was at work, and Dudley was hanging out with his friends at the Polkiss' playing video games. Or so she thought. Collapsing to the floor, leaning against the refrigerator, Petunia began to sob, and as a result, didn't hear her son come into the house. The moment Dudley entered the kitchen and made himself known to his mother, Petunia stood up and wiped away her tears of frustration.

"Mum, what's wrong? Is it Dad?"

"No, Dudley. Your father's fine. Harry's coming over tonight, with one of his father's old school friends, and the man's own child. They say that they have something important to discuss with us. According to the letter they sent, they plan on arriving around five-thirty. And since I don't want the neighbors talking bad about us, you will be here, and you will be on your best behaviour, okay, Dudley?"

Frowning, Dudley nodded before leaving the room. Once in his bedroom, Dudley began pounding his fists into his pillow without stopping to think about what he was doing.

"What does the freak think he's doing by coming back here before next summer? And Mum said he's bringing more of those freaks with him? Why is everything against me? Well, maybe not everything. Those two new girls down the street are pretty cute. And they're from America, so I'm sure I can impress them with my coolness. Well, I suppose I should start getting ready, since I only have an hour and a half before the freaks arrive."

Getting a set of hie good clothes together, Dudley headed across the hall to the bathroom for a shower. Meanwhile, down in the kitchen, Petunia was quickly trying to put a respectable dinner together on such short notice. And just as she managed to get the main course, breaded oven-baked pork chops, and the rolls into the oven, the doorbell rang, causing her to look over at the clock on the wall, which showed that it was only a quarter after four. Walking from the kitchen, Petunia was trying to figure out who who be coming over to visit at this time of the day. Opening the door, Petunia noticed her new neighbors that had moved into the large, six bedroom, 3 bathroom home down at number seven on Privet Drive. The only man in the group was the first to speak.

"Sorry to bother you, Mrs. Dursley, but none of the other neighbors are home from work yet, and our phone hasn't been connected yet. I was wondering if we could use yours real quick to call our daughters' friend, seeing as they were hoping for a slumber party at our home tonight."

"Um, yeah, sure. Come on in, Mr. ?"

"Oh, forgive me. I am Lord Nicholai Nikols. And this is my wife, Bethany, and our twin daughters, Melody and Harmony. We've just moved from America."

"Pleasure to meet you, Lord Nikols. I'm Petunia Dursley. Please, come right this way. The phone is in the lounge. Please, take as long as you need. Mrs. Nikols, would you and the girls like some tea?"

"Oh, yes, thank you."

Following Petunia into the kitchen, Beth commented on how lovely and welcoming the house looked.

"So, you have just moved here, and your daughters already have a best friend. That was quick."

"Well, actually, my friend, Elizabeth, died at the beginning of July, in America, and her daughter came to live with her father here, in Great Britain. Our daughters are the best of friends. Have been since infancy, to tell you the truth. Lizzie's daughter is only a week older than my twins. Oh, hello, young man."

At that moment, Dudley had entered the kitchen, fussing with his tie. Looking up, he flashed a charming smile at the new neighbors he had seen out walking this morning. The three Nikols women smiled in return, though the twins were giving false ones, even though you couldn't tell.

"Good afternoon, Ma'am. I'm Dudley Dursley. Charmed to meet you."

His last sentence was slightly strangled because his mother was working to get his tie right.

"It's nice to meet you, Dudley. I'm Bethany Nikols, and these are my twin daughters, Harmony and Melody. My husband is currently using the phone, but his name is Nicholai. Oh, honey, this is Dudley, Petunia's son."

Nick had entered the kitchen at that moment, grinning like the cat that ate the canary.

"Daddy, is she staying over tonight?"

"Harmony, we've been asked to join them for dinner tonight, but yes, Lulls will be staying over tonight."

Removing her cooking from the oven, Petunia had to ask.

"Who is Lulls?"

"Her name is Lullaby. Her father lives close to London, out in the country. But apparently they'll be here in Little Whinging tonight, though he wouldn't tell me why, except for dinner."

Both Dursley's in the house froze the moment they heard a car pull into the driveway, signaling the arrival of Vernon Dursley.

"You know, we have guests coming for dinner. Our nephew is coming with them, as well. I believe the man who sent the letter to me said his name was Remus Lupin."

"Your nephew is Harry Potter?"

Quiet little Melody was the one to exclaim that question just as Vernon unlocked the door.

"Yes, he is. You know him?"

"Actually, we do. And now we have an idea about why their coming tonight. Hope you don't mind, but Remus invited us to have dinner here with you and them, as well."

"That's fine, since I made plenty."

The Nikols family dismissed themselves so they could get ready for the dinner. By now it was a quarter to five, and they only had another forty-five minutes before their friends arrived. As they were leaving, they passed Vernon in the hallway, and quickly introduced themselves before leaving the home.

Vernon chose that moment to enter the kitchen. Looking around, a confused look on his face, Vernon noticed his wife was motioning for him to follow her to their bedroom, where Petunia filled him and when she saw him getting flustered over the fact that the 'freak' was coming back to their normal home, she warned him to be nice to the guests, especially since one of them was Harry's father's friend from Hogwarts, and was capable on doing magic legally.

After sending her husband to get in the shower and get ready, Petunia went down to the kitchen to prepare the green beans and melted cheese sauce, and the mashed potatoes and gravy. After the food was ready, Petunia went up to her bedroom to get dressed just as Vernon was heading down to wait with his son in the lounge. At exactly five-thirty, as Petunia was heading down the stairs in her simple black cocktail dress, the doorbell rang and being the closest to the door, she had been the one to answer it.


	21. A Dinner Affair

Expecting her nephew, Petunia was surprised to see the Nikols family arriving first. Nick was dressed in a simple dinner suit, with a copper-colored tie. Beth and the twins were wearing tea-length black satin skirts, but their satin blouses were different colors, though the same style. Beth's blouse matched her husband's tie, Melody's was a pale sky blue, and Harmony's was a pale princess pink.

Escorting them into the lounge, Petunia expressed how much she loved the near-matching outfits the Nikols' women were wearing. Vernon stood up from his chair and greeted the family, while his son simple stood and nearly began drooling over the twins. After handing each person a cup of either coffee or tea, Petunia left the room to answer the door, where instead of a ringing doorbell, the person had knocked. Opening the door, the three people she was dreading to see was standing on the doorstep, with a large black dog on a leash.

"Hello, Mrs. Dursley. I'm Remus Lupin. I sent you the letter earlier today."

"Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Lupin. Please, come in."

"Thank you, ma'am. My name is Lullaby Lupin, and this is my pet dog, Padfoot. I hope you don't mind that we brought him along, but I spent most of yesterday without him beside me. He's well behaved and he is trained to do his business outside."

"It's quite alright. Please, come into the lounge. Would you like coffee or tea?"

"Is it hot tea or iced tea? And what kind?"

"I can make either one. I have mint tea, raspberry tea, and honey-lemon tea."

"I'll have some raspberry iced tea, with ice, if possible."

"And I'll have some coffee, black, with three sugars. Thank you."

Harry had been staring at the floor since he entered the house, clearly still afraid of everything that had happened in the past. He was so lost in his memories that he didn't hear his aunt talking to him until Lullaby placed her hand o his shoulder.

"Harry, would you like something to drink?"

"Huh? Oh, um, just ice water for me. Thank you, Aunt Petunia."

Nervously, Harry lead Lullaby, Remus, and Padfoot in the lounge, while his aunt went into the kitchen to get their drinks. Looking around the room, he noticed that his uncle was having a surprisingly pleasant conversation with Nick and Beth Nikols, and his cousin was trying to flirt with the twins, who just stared at him, lightly sipping their own iced tea, one mint and one honey-lemon.

"Melody, Harmony, Uncle Nick, Aunt Beth, what are you doing here?"

"Your father and Petunia invited us to join you for dinner this evening. And you're staying at our place tonight. We moved in just down the street."

As Petunia entered the lounge with the tray of tea and coffee, she noticed that Lullaby was on the love-seat with Harry beside her and the large black dog lying down at their feet. She also took notice of the fact that the tie that Harry was wearing matched Lullaby's dress perfectly. And a ring that she had not noticed earlier was discreetly sparkling on Lullaby's left hand ring finger. Having a slight inclination as to what this evening was about, she announced that dinner would be ready in a few minutes, and went into the dining room to set the table.

The moment Dudley noticed that Harry was sitting next to the new and unbelievably beautiful girl, he started getting extremely flustered and was ready to jump of the chair that he was currently occupying and say that freaks like him aren't allowed to sit close to someone so beautiful, but his mother entered the room, announcing that dinner was on the table and ready to be served. In twos, everyone left the lounge and entered the dining room, where Vernon sat at the head of the table, Petunia at his left, and Dudley on the other side of Petunia. Across from Petunia sat Nicholai, who was sitting next to his wife, Beth. Remus sat at the other end of the table, opposite of Vernon, with his daughter on his right, with Harry on her other side. Melody was across from Harry, and her twin, Harmony, was across from Lullaby.

Dinner was a quiet affair, with pleasant, but tense, conversations. Dudley kept glaring to his left at Harry, who was sitting quietly, only speaking when someone began talking to him, which, more often than not, happened to be Lullaby. Vernon and Nick were talking about the types of business that they were in, though Nick was very careful on how he explained his line of work. Petunia told Beth that she was a happy housewife, and found out that Beth was in the medical field.

"So, Miss Lupin, are you in any activities?"

"Yes, I am, Mr. Dursley. Ballet, age two. Martial arts, age four. Gymnastics, age six. Figure skating, age eight. Swim team, age ten. Cheer and dance squads, age eleven. I also joined my school's favorite sport at age eleven. It'd be a little hard to explain how it's played. Harmony and Melody are also in several activities."

Harmony then told the Dursley family that she played on the girls' basketball team, the girls' soccer team, the softball team, the girls' hockey team, the swim team, the cheer and dance squads, and the same sport that Lullaby played. Melody took her turn in explaining her background a little bit. She wasn't as active as her twin, but she was involved in the drama club, the art club, the chess club, the debate team, and the swim team, as well as the cheer and dance squads, plus the sport that both of the other girls were in.

"So, Lullaby, Bethany told me that your mother died this summer. I'm sorry for your loss. What kind of work did she do?"

"Thank you, Mrs. Dursley. Um, she was in politics. She died a month before my birthday. Now, I'm living with my father, in the country, near London."

"What do you do, Remus?"

"Um, I actually work from home, but I stopped working, only temporary, until Lullaby goes to the boarding school I'm sending her to. Melody and Harmony are also attending the same school. After they leave, I plan on continuing with the book I'm writing, as well as filling in as a substitute at some schools around the London area."

After that, dinner continued to be a rather silent affair, except for Dudley trying to tell the twins about the school he and his friends attend every year, which happened to be Smeltings. When the table was cleared of everything from dinner, Petunia brought out her new chocolate fondue fountain, and the bowl of fresh cherries and strawberries for dessert, and the real reason for tonight was brought forth by Lullaby using her left hand to use the napkin to wipe a bit of chocolate from the side of her mouth. And Harmony happened to look at Lullaby right at that moment and see the ring on her best friend's hand.

"Oh, my sweet Merlin, Lullaby! Is that what I think it is?"

Now, thanks to Harmony's outburst, the whole table was focused on Lullaby, who had the grace not blush; after all, she did know it was going to come up sooner or later this evening. Remus, upon seeing Vernon's eyes go from Lullaby's face to the ring on her hand to his nephew, his face going from a pleasant peach color to a flustered fire red. Now he understood why his wife wanted him be nice to the guests tonight. Petunia just sat there a barely-there smile on her lips, while Dudley was looking at each person, looking very confused.

Concluding dessert, Petunia ushered everybody into the lounge while she fixed coffee and tea for everyone. Entering the lounge, she noticed that the calm aura from earlier that evening was gone and had been replaced by tense fury.


	22. Disaster at the Dursley's

"POTTER!!! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO GET INTO TROUBLE THIS TIME!?!?! AND I'M WARNING YOU NOW, IF THEY PLAN ON SENDING YOU HERE UNTIL YOU ARE OF LEGAL AGE, YOU WILL BE OUT OF THIS HOUSE AND ON THE STREET WITHIN MINUTES!!!!!! NOW, EXPLAIN YOURSELF!!!"

Everyone in the room jumped and coward against the wall at Vernon's outburst, except for Harry, who ran out of the lounge and up to his bedroom, and took refuge in his closet, hiding behind his way-too-large clothes. Vernon was still red in the face, though he had a look of complete shock plastered all over his face, for he had never seen his nephew run from a room so fast that he literally became a blur. Dudley finally removed his hands from his ears after his cousin left the room, knowing that his father was done shouting for the moment. Petunia had dropped the tray she had been holding, too startled to hold it when her husband began yelling.

The guests of the Dursley household remained stunned for a few minutes, but quickly recovered, since they all had some idea about what Harry's home life was like with the Dursley's. nobody moved for several minutes, giving Vernon time to cool down.

"Now, Mr. Dursley, I assure that Harry is in no trouble at all. I should also mention that what you just saw in the dining room is the reason for our being here tonight. Dudley, stay away from my little girl."

Remus said this last sentence while he was still looking at Vernon, though he had noticed the youngest Dursley creeping towards his daughter out of the corner of his eye. Dudley froze as everyone turned to stare at him, with his hand only a few inches away from groping Lullaby's ass. Lullaby, once she noticed the position his hand was in, promptly stomped on his foot and turned on her heel, walking proudly, and angrily, from the room, slowly following Harry's path to his room. Upon entering her fiance's room, she noticed that the room was empty.

"Harry, I know that you are in here. Now come on out, before your cousin decides that my ass needs a good pillow-fluffing. He already tried it, after you left the room, right before I came up to get you. By the way, I like your room. It's simple and cozy. Now, hurry up, before your uncle decides that the house could use some remodeling."

Harry slowly creeped out of his closet, not startling Lullaby since she had turned to face his hiding place while she had been looking around his room. Grabbing his hand and threading their fingers together, she kissed him lightly on the cheek before they headed back down stairs, once again, to face his family.

Upon slowly entering the lounge, Harry noticed that everyone was calmly sitting down, though they were all looking very tense, especially his Uncle Vernon. After waiting until the two teens sat down, Petunia spoke up quietly, trying to keep the peace in the house so that the neighbors wouldn't start getting the wrong idea about her family.

"So, exactly what are we supposed to be finding out tonight?"

Harry and Lullaby looked at each other before they both turned to face Remus to see if either he would tell the Dursley family or if they would have to. Remus turned his head to look at his daughter and motioned for her to begin, and taking an encouraging breath, Lullaby began explaining the whole story.

"Okay, it's like this: Harry's father, James Potter, was friends with my father, and James married Petunia's sister, Lily Evans. Lily's Beth friend at Hogwarts was my mother, Elizabeth Malkovich, who married my father, obviously. Lily and my mother got pregnant with Harry and I around the same time, and after they found out that Lily was having a boy, and my mother was having a girl, James came up with the idea of betrothing Harry and myself. Our mothers were excited over the idea of not drifting apart over the years, since Harry and I were to be married by the time we turn twenty-one. It took them a couple of days, but my father finally agreed to it."

Lullaby turned to Harry, letting him know he was to continue explaining to his family.

"The two of us were born on two separate days, but only ten minutes apart. I was born at eleven-fifty-five at night on July thirty-first, and Lullaby was born at twelve-oh-five in the morning on August first. Lullaby and I weren't supposed to find out about any of this until we turned seventeen, but when her mother died this summer, she had to move here and our paths had to cross, everything came out into the open. The ring on Lullaby's hand is a symbol that she is not available for courting in our world, though it's not very common to show such jewelry before age sixteen, according the Mr. Weasley."

Remus let the silence fall over them for a few minutes before he spoke up.

"Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, each summer starting next year, Harry will be spending only two weeks here with you, and the rest of the summer at my cottage in the woods. You will, however, also have Lullaby here with Harry, since she practically refuses to let him out of her sight for longer than a few minutes. Her mother died, and both of Harry's parents have died, and she fears that without being close to Harry, one or both of them will be 'taken out' of the 'game', so to speak."

"I should let you, Mr. Dursley, that my mother used to live next to you when you were children. She kept saying that you and your sister Marge were always so mean to her because she was different. That was a bad move. Like Lily, she was muggleborn, and in the United States, she was the Minister of Magic. A very important person in our world. One boy, a few days back, made the mistake of calling my mother a mudblood, which is what a muggleborn is to the aristocratic pureblood wizarding families. Let's put it this way: he's lucky to still have his special 'wand' attached to his body, though I do think the broken nose actually improved his appearance, don't you agree, Harry?"

"Oh, yes, definitely. Now, do any of you have any questions?"

Vernon was the first to open his mouth.

"Okay, so next summer, Potter will be returning from his school for two weeks, and this girl will be coming with him?"

Remus, Harry, and Lullaby all nodded.

"She better not expect breakfast in bed or us drawing a bubble bath for her."

The four magical teens looked at one another and burst out into laughter. When Petunia asked what was so funny, Nick explained the situation to the confused family.

"The twins, Lullaby, and now Harry, have been getting up around a quarter after four in the morning to get ready for their morning work-outs, which has been known to last about three and a half hours, then the girls make a very healthy breakfast after cleaning up and getting ready for the day. Though all three of them are good at working around the house, each of them have a special area. Lullaby's an artist in the kitchen, Harmony can make the house sparkle like diamonds, and Melody can turn a simple garden into a outdoor paradise."

Petunia stared at the three girls as though she just found the most perfect people in the world, and all of them female. Her day had just gotten brighter.

Harry excused himself to go use the bathroom, while Petunia went into the kitchen to fetch some more tea and coffee for everyone. Nick and Remus were discussing the arrangements for the next day when Lullaby would be returning home, and Beth was fussing over her daughters, who were still trying to get rid of the giggles from a few minutes before. Vernon had turned to view the paper, more of a momentary distraction than actually reading it. Dudley had noticed that Lullaby had taken her dog outside to do his business, which he thankfully did in the corner of the garden by the trash cans, as Lullaby had brought a 'doggy bag' out with her.

"You know, someone as beautiful as you shouldn't be doing something so disgusting. Potter the freak should be out here doing that, not you."

As he edged closer to Lullaby, his hands reached out and firmly grabbed her ass, squeezing it, tightly, but affectionately. It only took a few minutes, but Lullaby had done a fair bit of damage in that short amount of time. Harry had seen everything from the upstairs bathroom window, and had rushed down to the garden, with everyone following him. Lullaby was sitting on top of Dudley, using her fists to attack and hit every possible area she could reach. During the fight, Dudley had, surprisingly, managed to get in a few hits of his own. By the time Remus and Nick had gotten Lullaby off of the boy, Dudley was almost unrecognizable, with two black eyes, a broken nose, a busted lip, two missing teeth, and bleeding bruises on the rest of his face and down his arms.

Through the blood the was dripping down from her top lip, Lullaby shouted at Dudley.

"You keep your damn hands off me!! The next time you even breath on me, I'll put you in a wheelchair, permanently. My ass is not something you can just grab, not that I'd allow you to touch it ever. And don't even fucking think about doing the same thing to Melody and Harmony. They're just as vicious as I am."

Pulling herself from her father's grasp, Lullaby stormed into the house, heading for the bathroom to clean up. Looking in the mirror, she took notice of the damage that Dudley had managed to inflict upon her. Her left cheek was bruised a very dark purple-black color, her right cheek was bleeding lightly, her upper lip was busted in the center, and she had fingernail scratches all across her forehead. And to add insult to injury, her dress was torn in five places near the bottom, as well as one strap completely ripped off.

A knock on the bathroom door made Lullaby jump, having not expected anyone to follow her. Turning and walking to the door, she opened it to see her father, Harry, and Petunia standing there.

"Sorry, Mrs. Dursley, but he had it coming. He called Harry a freak, then he grabbed my butt, and he even tried to kiss me. I wasn't going to call for one of you to help. I was perfectly capable of handling it myself, though that was the first time a serious opponent managed to actually hit me and leave damage."

"Don't fret over it right now, dear. Let's just get you cleaned up."

Remus took out his wand and healed his daughter, and fixed her dress, and left the bruise to Harry, who had carried in an ice pack, and grabbed the container of Aloe Vera, helping Lullaby to get rid of the swelling lump of dark color. Petunia and Remus went back down into the lounge where Nick and Beth were treating Dudley's injuries. The moment his wife entered the room, Vernon tore out of the room, heading for the bathroom to yell at Lullaby for hurting his only son.

"You little bitch! Don't think that you're going to get away with that."

"Well, he deserved it, and someone had to teach him a lesson. He roughly grabbed my ass, and tried to kiss me. His forcefulness has rapist written all over it. He'll be put in jail before he's eighteen if you don't get him under control now."

Vernon began purpling, the vein in his temple throbbing rapidly, which was a silent warning to move Lullaby out of the way the moment his uncle started charging towards her, which was exactly what happened. The moment Vernon hit the toilet, Harry and Lullaby ran down to the lounge, both hiding behind Remus, who had his wand trained on the door, where he had just put up a protective barrier to stop anyone who wanted to hurt someone in the room from entering it. Vernon ranted and raved on the other side of the door for about twenty minutes before he went into the kitchen to get himself a glass of bourbon, to calm his nerves. While her husband was in the kitchen, Petunia suggested that her guests head over to the Nikols' place, which was a safe place, since Vernon would not enter the home of someone who was 'different' from those he was associated with.

Remus thanked Petunia for a lovely dinner and dessert, and apologized for what has happened between his daughter and her son, but Petunia simply waved it off, saying that it was bound to happen, though she was surprised it didn't happen earlier in the evening. The group left the Dursley's house without Vernon noticing, and Dudley was in shock over the fact that a twig of a girl had kicked his ass, and on his own turf, no less. He was glad his friends hadn't been there to see it happen, it would've shamed him for years if they had.


	23. First Family Fight

Once Remus, Lullaby, Harry, and Padfoot were safe inside the home of their friends, Remus turned an angry eye towards his daughter. Everyone excused themselves and went into the kitchen. The only one that stayed with Remus and Lullaby was Padfoot.

"Lullaby, I'm very disappointed in your behavior this evening."

"But Daddy, he -."

"No buts, Lullaby Dream Lupin. No matter how Dudley acted, you do not stoop to his level."

"But Daddy, he was -."

"I said no buts. You are grounded from right now until school starts. The tent gets put away, and you stay within ten feet of the cottage. And you are not going to stay here with the twins tonight. Hey, Padfoot, you don't bite me."

Padfoot had nipped at Remus' leg for getting mad at his daughter. He was there when it happened, but until they got home, he wouldn't be able to explain what had happened to his old friend. He growled when Remus scolded him.

"No growling, Paddy. Go find Harry, and stay with him."

Licking Lullaby's hand, Padfoot followed Harry's scent into the kitchen, leaving his little Angelfish with her very angry father.

"Daddy, you are being so unfair. What if Dudley had been like that Lucius Malfoy? Mommy wasn't able to defend herself. I, on the other hand, have been a master in the marital arts since I was ten. I don't want to end up in the same position as Mom. Halloween marks the anniversary of her rape, and I'm only a year younger than she was."

"That's not the point. The point is that you were a guest in their house. You could've called for one of us to come help you."

At that, Lullaby told her father that she was not a helpless baby, and could take of herself, then she decided to start giving him the silent treatment, which had always been a great fight ender, in her opinion.

Harry looked at the door when Padfoot came in, feeling a little nervous since Lullaby and Remus were still in the foyer. Watching Harry pace back and forth in the kitchen, Bethany decided he needed a tonic for his nerves, which she mixed in with his honey-lemon hot tea, knowing it was his favorite, based on the tea he had at his relatives' house. About ten minutes later, Remus and Lullaby entered the kitchen, both red in the face, and had the 'silent death' look in both their eyes. Neither of them would look at the other, which was quite odd for Lullaby, since she had always been a friendly and open person.

"Um, Lulls, do we want to know what happened just now?"

Huffing, Lullaby turned away from her friends and told them she had been grounded until the end of the summer vacation and wasn't going to be able to stay over tonight. Melody and Harmony looked so very crest fallen, but Remus would not budge on his decision.

"Thank you, Nick, Beth, for letting us come over, but we must be getting home. We'll see you on September first at King's Cross. We'll meet you at the front entrance at ten-thirty, so I can show you where the kids get onto the Hogwarts Express."

Beth and Nick nodded at Remus and hugged their honorary niece before their guests left via Floo Network. Now they had to deal with upset twins for the next two weeks. What fun, what fun. Remus, on the other hand, had bigger problems. A daughter who wouldn't talk to him, an honorary godson and an old friend who both took Lullaby's side.


	24. Some Punishments Are Revoked

Remus was at a loss. It had been a week since the fiasco at the Dursley's and his daughter still wasn't talking to him. Sure, she would talk to Harry and Sirius, but the moment Remus entered the room, she would go into complete silence. If she wasn't in the kitchen cooking, or in the bedroom sleeping, she would be on the front porch reading one of her romance novels. Lizzie had told him that their daughter never caused problems at home, but with him, she was being pretty damn difficult. She did obey when he told her that she was grounded and that she couldn't go any further than ten feet from the house. After a week of having to cook his own meals since his daughter was totally ignoring him, Remus decided that he would cut down some of her restrictions.

"Harry, come here. I need you to pass on a message to Lullaby. Tell her that she is still grounded until she leaves for Hogwarts, but she can have her tent back up, and she can go back into the maze as long as she has you, me, or Sirius with her."

Harry nodded his understanding and went into the bedroom, where Lullaby was busy packing her things for when she left for Hogwarts. With a small smile, he watched her put her books and clothes into her school trunk, still wearing her pajama pants and an old baggy t-shirt, with her hair in a very messy ponytail. It's was almost time for Harry and Lullaby to start making dinner, and the girl was still in her pajamas. But then again, so was everyone else in the house. It was definitely a lazy day at Lupin Cottage. Clearing his throat, Harry accidentally startled Lullaby, causing her to swing around, clocking him on the side of his head, hard enough to give him a headache, but not hard enough to cause any brain damage.

"Oh, Harry, I'm so sorry, but you can't sneak up on me like that. I've been on edge since I haven't been able to work out in the mornings."

"Well, then, I have good news for you. Your father sent me to give you a message. He said that you can put your tent back up and sleep in it until we leave for school, and you can go into the maze, on the condition that you have either me, him, or Sirius with you, but you are still grounded until school starts. He revoked some of the restrictions, and I think the reason for his decision was you giving him the silent treatment for a week."

Harry kissed Lullaby's cheek before leaving the bedroom, heading for the kitchen, where he knew Remus and Sirius would be. Lullaby sat on the bed, thinking over what Harry had told her, and decided to start talking to her father again, and only half-forgiving him. It wasn't really fair that he had canceled the sleep-over with Melody and Harmony at their new place, and it was simply because Dudley tried to get frisky with her. But she forgave him since he did give her one of her favorite safe havens: the labyrinth.

"Message delivered, Remus. Let me guess: You got tired of the silent treatment and decided to give a few of her privileges back to her?"

"Yeah. Lizzie had told me she never had to ground her because she was every mother's dream child and was never in trouble, except for Winterland, but they had detentions, so it was taken care of there. But now, I think that Lullaby was hiding her bad side from her mother, and that she's just trying to get it out of her system. Of course, your cousin did provoke her."

"That he did, Remus, that he did. It's in the past now, so let's forget it happened. Oh, before I forget, Lullaby needs to take her medications."

Getting up from the table, Harry grabbed a bottle of mineral water then headed into the bathroom to gather the anti-depressant and Valium for Lullaby. He couldn't believe there was only a week and a half left before he would be returning to school, and with Lullaby on his arm, no less. He thanked Merlin that they would be arriving at the school on a Friday, leaving him to spend the next day showing Lullaby around, even though they pretty much had the same schedule. He had yet to find out what extra courses she would be taking.

"Hey, Lulls, it's time for your meds. And I was also wondering what extra classes you were going to be taking."

"Huh? Oh, thanks, Harry." Lullaby swallowed both of her pills at once. "Um, I plan on taking Care of Magical Creatures, Muggle Studies, Divination, and on Sundays, Headmaster Dumbledore is letting me take Advanced Potions and Ancient Runes, and in the evenings, I'll be at choir practice."

"Why Divination? Or more importantly: Why would you want to take extra Potions classes?"

"Divination because of my family's past, which Daddy doesn't know about, so I'll tell you on the Hogwarts express. And Potions is my absolute favorite course at Winterland."

"I see. Well, I should warn you, everyone in Gryffindor calls the Potions professor the 'Bat of the Dungeons' for a reason. I swear the man doesn't know what the sun is."

At that, Lullaby began laughing, occasionally releasing a snort, which then caused both her father and Sirius to come running in.

"What happened?"

"I told her that the Gryffindors call Professor Snape the 'Bat of the Dungeons', then I said that he probably doesn't even know what the sun is."

"Harry, that's not a very nice thing to say about Professor Snape."

"Although, chances are that it's true."

"Sirius, not now."

Sirius shrugged before sitting down on the bed next to a still-laughing Lullaby.

"Hey, Daddy, I forgive you for grounding me. And thank you for giving me back the labyrinth. Just, please, don't take it away from me again, okay?"

Remus nodded and hugged his daughter to him. He would be so lonely with out his daughter when she left for Hogwarts in only a week and a half from now. Somehow, they quartet would make it through the next week and a half before the two students left until the holidays, but it would be hard for them to say good-bye, especially since Sirius would be in his dog form at the train station.


	25. Fight on the Platform

A big, gleaming scarlet train engine was waiting on Platform Nine-and-Three-Quarters, white-grey smoke billowing from the smokestack, and students saying hellos to their friends and good-byes to their parents. Lullaby stood there next to Harry, holding his hand, staring at the impressive locomotive in complete awe. Harry smirked lightly when he heard Lullaby whisper 'Wow!'. A few days before, he had wondered how she got to Winterland every year, and when he asked her, she told him that they just used the Floo Network to arrive at the school about an hour before the Start-of-Term Feast, which was a lot less hassle since some people wait until the morning of the day that they were to leave for school.

"It's pretty impressive, Harry. I bet you were stunned the first time you saw it."

"Yes, I was, even more so than you are. I had just found out about Hogwarts, so everything was pretty exciting for me."

As the duo headed towards the far end of the train, they caught sight of Draco Malfoy and a few of his Slytherin friends. And when Draco noticed his school rival, and the Potty's little girlfriend, he pointed them out and the group headed straight for the two young lovers. Remus was with Sirius outside of the station (so Padfoot could go to the bathroom), so he wasn't able to see what was about to happen before his daughter left for Hogwarts.

"Well, well, we meet again, Miss Lupin. Do tell, how was the rest of your summer?"

"Exceptionally well, thank you for asking. How was yours?"

"It was terrible, no thanks to you. It could've gone better if a certain someone hadn't broken my fucking nose."

"If a certain someone hadn't fucking insulted my mother in front of me, I wouldn't've had to break his nose."

Pansy Parkinson turned her head from Harry to look at Lullaby.

"So, you're Lullaby Lupin? Ha! Sorry but you're looking at the hottest girl in school, and after what you did to Drakey, I won't even consider letting you into my clique. You'll just have to stay with the losers of Gryffindor."

Harry and Lullaby looked at Pansy with extreme dislike.

"Oh, look, Harry, Malfoy taught the little puggy-wuggy to talk in English."

"PUG?!?!"

"Yeah, you know, like the breed of dog. That is what you look like. A girl at my old school, she's eleven years old, and has a flat chest and a few zits scattered around her face, and is about six inches shorter than you, and she's way hotter than you."

Now Pansy was steaming, her face turning redder with each word that came out of Lullaby pretty little mouth, which was currently in a smug-looking smirk that was capable of rivaling Malfoy's trademark smirk. Before Harry and Draco knew it, Pansy had launched herself at Lullaby, sending them both to the floor. Harry was thankful that Lullaby was wearing a pair of black carpi's with her white camisole instead of the black mini-skirt she had originally planned on. After a few minutes into the fight, Harry and Draco noticed that there was a large crowd of students watching the fight, egging on the two fourteen-year-old girls.

Remus appeared just as Harry and Draco both jumped in to stop the fight, but to no avail, since Pansy accidentally ended up giving Draco a black eye, and Harry received the same from Lullaby. The girls just tore through anyone who got in between them. Not even Lucius shouting out for them to act their age had gotten them to stop the fight. Remus was horrified at his daughter's behaviour. When there was only twenty minutes before the train left, Padfoot barked loudly before jumping in and catching Lullaby's carpi's in his jaws, pulling her away from the furious Slytherin female.

"I'm still the hottest girl in Hogwarts. If anyone tells you different, Lupin, they're lying to make you feel welcome to OUR school."

And with that, Pansy left with the Slytherin friends, heading for the train after her mother, Priscilla, fixed her 'battle wounds' until it looked like they were never there. Remus, however, was not as loving towards his daughter as he could've been. Half yelling as his daughter, everyone within thirty feet turned to face the father-daughter fight.

"Lullaby Dream Lupin!!! What have I told you about getting into fights?!? First, it was young Draco at the World Cup, and breaking his nose on top of that, then Harry's cousin Dudley, leading to Vernon nearly murdering you, and now this! What has gotten into you to cause you to start fights?"

Crossing her arms over her chest, Lullaby glared angrily at her father. "Believe it or not, I didn't start any of the fights. Draco Malfoy called my mother a 'mudblood' only a month after her death, which is something you don't do in my presence. Dudley grabbed my ass and tried to kiss me even though he knows I'm unavailable. And as for Pansy, well that fight I can blame on Draco as well, because if he hadn't lead his friend over by me and Harry, Pansy wouldn't've suggested that she's the hottest girl at Hogwarts, and have me verbally retaliate."

Lullaby then turned on heel and stormed to the very end of the train, and was about to step onto the train when Harry pulled her back a few feet, where Remus pulled his daughter into his arms, letting her know he still loved her and that he'd miss her so much. Lullaby slowly calmed down, returned her father's hug, then bent down to give Padfoot a kiss on the head and a hug good-bye. Harry rolled his eyes as Remus pulled him in for a hug before the man had let the teens board the train, which would be leaving in just a few minutes. Both Harry and Remus had been thinking the same thing: An interesting start to a new school year at a new school for Lullaby.


	26. Aboard the Hogwarts Express

The lunch trolley arrived at the compartment that Harry and Lullaby were occupying. The woman pushing the cart noticed that Harry wasn't chatting away with his friend like he usually did. In fact, the whole compartment was quiet. When she looked in, she saw the reason. Harry was sharing the compartment with a young woman that she hadn't seen before, and he was cowering in the corner by the door in a dignified manner. The girl was sitting in the corner by the window on the opposite side of the room, fuming like there was no tomorrow, cursing strongly under her breath. The dear woman put two and two together, figuring out why Harry was scared to be too close to the girl at the moment. The savior of the Wizarding world was afraid of a girl the same age as him, though who could really blame him; girls truly were terrifying, especially when they got their visits from 'Aunt Flo'.

"Anything off the trolley, dears?"

Harry immediately jumped up, saying that he'd take a few of everything, knowing that he'd need the energy if her had to either hold Lullaby back from another fight or fight her himself. After he paid for his food, Lullaby stood up, and scanned the cart before saying she didn't want anything. The elderly lady looked at her with surprise. No student has ever said no to the goodies on the trolley.

"There's too much sugar and unhealthy stuff in those snacks. Besides, I brought something to eat, anyway. Thank you."

Lullaby sat back down and the trolley headed down to the next compartment. Harry took a bite out of one of his Pumpkin Pasties and watched as Lullaby pulled her travel cooler out of her trunk. She pulled out a fresh bag of washed baby carrots and a container of french onion veggie dip, and a bottle of her mineral water, to which she added a packet of her favorite raspberry iced tea powder. Healthy lunch on the go, that's what Lullaby had told him when she had pack her food that morning after her work-out, while she ate her breakfast. Carrots helped her eyesight, the dip added flavor to the carrots, and the flavored mineral water was simply refreshing.

Somehow, he wasn't surprised that she had decided to bring her healthy personality to Hogwarts with her. He knew that no matter which house she was put in, she would annoy her housemates with lectures on healthy eating and working out on a daily basis, as well as waking her dorm mates up at a quarter after four in the morning while she got ready to go out for her morning work-out. He could just see her pulling a 'Hermione' and hounding them about their studies.

An hour later, when they were both done eating, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Fred, George, Harmony, and Melody had finally decided to tracked them down. After the fight on the platform, the seven of them had unanimously agreed to give Lullaby a few hours to calm down, which, from what they could see, only half worked, since she wasn't mumbling under her breath anymore, but was blatantly ignoring them all, even her two best friends, by reading the last five chapters on _'Soul Magic'_. Harmony was the one to break the silence.

"So, Harry, I see you survived being in the presence of a murderously furious Lullaby Lupin. I must admit that I'm impressed by that. Very few people are brave enough to stay near her when she's mad."

"Um, thanks, Harmony. Actually, I stayed crouched over here in the corner the whole time, until the trolley came, then I relaxed a bit. I sneezed once, and Lullaby had pointed her wand at my face. I could've sworn I saw fire in her eyes before she settled back into her silent, self-induced fuming trance. It scared me, to be honest."

Harry looked over at Lullaby for a few seconds before turning his attention to his shoe, which, he noticed, had a few scuffs on them. Lullaby would be chewing him out when she found out about the black streaks on his new white sneakers. Everyone in the compartment jumped when they heard Lullaby's soft voice speak up from the corner, her book closed in her lap.

"I'm sorry, everyone, for what happened earlier. But that pug-faced bitch just pushed my buttons by fooling herself into thinking that I'd actually want to hang around her and her circle of bumbling bimbo friends. She said that she's the hottest girl at the school, but I would actually have to say, from what I've seen, that title should really go to Hermione. She probably thinks she's the hottest girl because the guys find that she's a very easy, but terrible, lay."

The whole compartment burst into laughter at the thought of Pansy Parkinson being good for only one thing: BOOTY CALLS!!! Somehow, none of them would've been surprised if the accusation turned out to be true, even though Parkinson was only fourteen years old. If the little Slytherin bitch got herself pregnant sometime this year, it would confirm their suspicions about the pug.

The rest of the train ride to Hogwarts was filled with stories about the adventures of the 'Golden Trio' and some tales from Lullaby and the Nikols twins about what they did at Winterland. Before they knew it, it was dark out and the train began slowing down, finally coming to a halt at the Hogsmeade Station. Exiting the train and heading for the carriages, the group noticed the fourth year Slytherins glaring at them from where they stood on the Station's platform. They could tell that the opposing House was going to make tonight miserable for the Gryffindors and the three new students.

The three transfer students were in awe at the majestic appearance of the Great Hall. They had been told by Mr. Filch to wait in the Entrance Hall, just outside of the Great Hall doors, until the Headmaster called them forward. The three of the waited patiently while the first year students were sorted, one by one, by Professor McGonagall.


	27. The Sorting Ceremony

To say that Harry was nervous was an understatement. He was bloody terrified of the idea that his Lullaby would be put into Slytherin like Fred, George, and Sirius had predicted. The very thought of Lullaby being in a house other than Gryffindor unnerved him. No person in this school knew Lullaby like he did, save for Melody and Harmony. If his intended ended up in a different house, he hoped that at least one of the twins was with her.

The sorting was only half over and he was about ready to have a complete breakdown, and the only reason he didn't was the fact that Malfoy would have something to torment him with this year if he did. Somehow, the sorting ceremony seemed to be going a lot slower than usual. Normally, two students could be sorted in a minute, but tonight, it seemed that it was taking the Sorting Hat two minutes to sort just one first year.

Finally, there were only five first years to sort, twin boys and three girls who appeared to be triplets. Harry's eyes darted to the large doors for a few seconds before returning his gaze to the remaining unsorted first years. One of the girls, Eliza, was just sitting down at the Ravenclaw table, currently watching her sister, Emily, while she was sitting on the stool, with the Sorting Hat resting on her head. After about three minutes, the Hat finally sorted Emily into Slytherin. The final of the girls, Erica, had just sat down and the Hat was on her head for only five seconds before the young girl was sorted into Gryffindor.

Harry's stomach dropped when all three girls were not only separated, but two of them were in the two rivaling houses. Suddenly, it seemed that nothing could make the evening any worse. But there was still a chance that it could, since the twin boys had yet to be sorted. It was clear that both boys were excited about starting school at Hogwarts, but the fact that the three sisters had been completely separated kinda rained on the boys' parade.

The first boy, Jason, gave his brother a reassuring shoulder squeeze before walking up for his turn to be sorted. It took nearly a minute before the Hat finally placed the young boy into Slytherin. Flashing a bright smile as he passed, Jason let his brother know that he'd stick by him, even if they were in different houses. The other boy nodded before going to sit on the stool and wait for the Sorting Hat to send him to his 'doom'. Nearly a minute of silence had passed before the Hat declared Mason a Gryffindor.

Gryffindor and Slytherin were both upset by fact that now the two houses had to start being somewhat civil since two students from each house had a sibling in the other. Harry had been wrong: the evening could get worse. And it was only going to get worse when the three transfer students got sorted in just a few minutes.

Finally, Headmaster Dumbledore stood up addressed the student body and the faculty.

"Everyone, I have some very exciting news to share with you all, though I'm sure a fair few of you already know what this news is. But for those of you that don't know, we have three very talented you witches transferring from Winterland Academy of Magic in the United States. Please, come forward, dear girls."

The moment Harry had been waiting for had finally arrived. Lullaby, Melody, and Harmony entered the Great Hall, all three of them walking with an intimidating, yet approachable, grace. Harry glanced out of the corner of his eyes and noticed that the Slytherin boys that hadn't seen the fight earlier that day were too busy drooling over the trio of girls to actually pay attention to their girlfriends, all of whom were simply glaring daggers at the new students.

When the three girls finally reached the Headmaster's side, Lullaby leaned in and whispered a request to him, to which he nodded, smiling mischievously.

"Students, faculty, I would like to introduce Lullaby Lupin, Melody Nikols, and Harmony Nikols. For their sorting, Miss Lupin has requested a reversal sorting. Normally, we sort in alphabetical order by last name from A to Z. For these three, however, we shall be going backwards from Z to A."

And with that, Professor McGonagall placed the Sorting Hat on Melody's head. The hall was silent, except for a few Slytherin girls scolding their boyfriends for staring at the 'unattractive' new girls. It took the Hat thirty seconds before deciding to place Melody in Gryffindor.

Next, the Hat was placed upon Harmony's head. When nearly two minutes had passed, Harmony was placed in Slytherin, much to Harry and Melody's dismay. Lullaby had the type of look that suggested that she knew her friend was going to be placed in that house.

Finally, it was Lullaby's turn to be sorted. Hermione had to keep reaching across the table to swat Harry's hands away from his mouth, since he had taken to biting his nails as a nervous habit. The Hat was placed on Lullaby's head only to have the Hat call out 'Slytherin' in less than five seconds. Harry's worst fear had finally happened. His bride-to-be was in his enemy's house. Melody was about to go into hysterics. Harry had told her that the Gryffindor students slept up in Gryffindor tower, and the Slytherin students slept down by the dungeons, at the other end of the castle. Melody and Harmony had never been that far apart at night. In fact, the twins sent every second of every day together, with the exception of being in the bathroom.

Immediately, Draco, Pansy, Harry, and Melody all stood up and complained over the fact that Lullaby and Harmony were placed in Slytherin. Draco and Pansy were complaining over the obvious reason that Lullaby had kicked both of their asses. Harry and Melody were clearly complaining because of Melody's twin and Harry's intended being in a completely different house.

Dumbledore called for silence, which he was granted after a few seconds.

"I know that some of you are upset about the sorting of our transfer students. The Sorting Hat placed them where it did for a reason, however unknown to us as it is. I would also like to mention that we have a very rare situation that coincides with the arrival of Lullaby Lupin. Before they were born, Lullaby Lupin and Harry Potter were betrothed by means of a binding magical contract. For those of you that aren't aware, Harry's father, James Potter, was friends with Lullaby's father, Remus Lupin, our Defence professor from last year. Lily Evans, Harry's mother, and Elizabeth Malkovich, Lullaby's mother, were also very close friends."

The Headmaster was met with complete silence. A magical betrothal had never been announced at Hogwarts in the past, unless it came from the mouths of the two people in question. If the headmaster was announcing it, the importance of the betrothal must have been either very important or the request of Harry and Lullaby.

"Now, I don't want to hear any complaints over the sorting anymore. Please, everyone, enjoy the feast."


	28. An Eventful First Night

The Headmaster of Hogwarts sat down and the food appeared on the tables, much to the surprise of most first years. Most of the older Slytherin boys tried to make Lullaby and Harmony feel welcome, but the two girls just sent icy glares their way. Even Draco Malfoy lean away slightly, a little unnerved since he had perfected the icy glare, and these two girls had surpassed him on it.

At the Gryffindor table, Harry and Melody had fallen into a melancholy mood, despite the fact Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and the Weasley twins kept trying to drag them into conversations. Melody hadn't noticed that she had started crying until she felt Harry use a napkin to wipe the tears away. Harry placed an arm around Melody, trying to reassure her that everything would be okay.

Up at the teachers' table, Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Snape watched both tables with great interest. There was no doubt that this year would be extremely eventful, especially compared to the past three years, and even more so since they would be hosting the TriWizard Tournament.

Snape flinched when he saw Blaise Zabini place one arm around Harmony, and used his other hand to lift her chin so she'd be looking at him, only to be smacked right off his seat by the same girl. Harmony stood up at the same time as Lullaby, and over at the Gryffindor, Melody and Harry were quick to follow suit.

"I TOLD YOU TO LEAVE ME ALONE AND TO QUIT TOUCHING ME!!!! YOU JUST PROVED THAT WOMEN ARE, INDEED, SMARTER THAN MEN!!! NOW, LEAVE ME THE HELL ALONE, OR I WILL KNOCK YOUR HEAD RIGHT OFF YOUR SHOULDERS, YOU GREAT, IDIOTIC BRUTE!!!!!"

Poor Zabini was sitting on the floor, trying to cower on the other side of his friend, Theodore Nott. Lullaby grabbed both of Harmony's arms and walked her out to the Entrance Hall, with Harry and Melody following close behind them. None of the teachers got up, all having decided to let the teens work out their frustration on their own.

Out in the Entrance Hall, Harmony was mumbling curses under her breath, pacing back and forth in front of the large doors that lead to the school grounds, and her twin, Melody, was walking right beside her, trying to calm her down. Lullaby was leaning against the wall, arms crossed under her chest, and Harry beside her, with his left arm draped over her shoulders, the two of them watching their friend vent her anger.

"Who the hell does he think he is, placing his hands on me? And after I specifically told him to leave me alone, too. I'm going to kill him the next time he lays a hand on me without my permission."

Harry had suddenly created the perfect Slytherin repellent, and voiced his idea to his bride-to-be, and their two friends.

"Harmony, just chill-out and relax, okay? All you got to do is just stick with Lullaby, and if the other Slytherins decide to try and get to know you more than you're comfortable with, then drag them along to our four-thirty work-outs. Then lecture them about the benefits of healthy eating and completely cutting out the junk food. And then you can hound them about studying in their free time, and doing their homework every night. I guarantee that they'll leave you alone within a week. The Gryffindors and the Slytherins have never gotten long, so they'll leave you alone if you and Lullaby are constantly hanging out with Melody and I, as well as Hermione, Ginny, Fred, George, and Ron."

The blonde twins both stopped walking and turned to face each other before facing Harry and Lullaby with smirks on their faces.

"That's a brilliant plan, Harry. Hey, in the morning, let's meet right here before we head down to the lake. Melody will make sure you get your ass out of bed, Harry. We'll need to be up at four o'clock from now on to start on time."

"Yeah… Just a few problems with that."

"Oh? And what's that?"

"The caretaker, Mr. Filch and his cat, Mrs. Norris. And then there's Peeves the Poltergeist."

Lullaby assured Harry that there were no problems with that. Melody and Harry would be using the Invisibility cloak and the Maruaders' Map to leave the Gryffindor Tower, and her and Harmony would be in the shadows behind the suits of armor in the Entrance Hall. It was flawless, and if they were caught, they had a very legitimate excuse, which, if questioned, could be proved by their parents.

When the plan was set, the quartet headed back into the Great Hall to finish their supper. They had just taken notice of the type of food that was on the tables. Apparently, Dumbledore had alerted the house-elves to the fact that there were a few health nuts, because there were bowls of salads and organic vegetables placed every five feet or so along the tables, and pitchers of mineral water and a few different flavors of iced tea as well.

From the head table, the teachers watched in amusement as Melody was piling the most healthy foods on Harry's plate, along with one slice of ham and a chicken leg. The girl had poured raspberry iced tea into his goblet, as well, her mouth moving rapidly, clearly lecturing him, and those around them on the importance of healthy eating. And over at the Slytherin table, Harmony was busy organizing the food on her plate in order of health levels, and Lullaby was adding food to her own plate while telling her housemates to eat certain foods, lest they end up fat by the winter holidays. Harry's plan had been very effective in steering the Slytherin away from the two girls that had transferred from America.

Severus Snape, the Head of Slytherin, was confused. His precious snakes were being bullied in a very discreet way by two girls who appeared to be harmless, except for the one moment when Harmony had slapped Blaise Zabini from his seat. The blonde girl had a twin sister who was in Gryffindor, and he had the werewolf's daughter, Potter's intended, in his house. Somehow, he had the feeling that his students were going to be forever changed until the current fourth years graduated. With that thought in mind, the Potions Master turned his attention back to his food.

A shout from the Gryffindor table made everyone stop what they were doing. Melody and Harry were standing on their seats, ready to run towards the Slytherin table if they were needed. By the time the teachers lifted their heads to take in the current activities, a ear-splitting shriek erupted from the Slytherin table. Blaise Zabini and Pansy Parkinson had each taken a pitcher of the mineral water and dumped the ice cold water on top of Harmony and Lullaby. To say that Lullaby and Harmony had gotten mad would be lying.

They were furious. Lullaby grabbed two bottles of ranch salad dressing a emptied them both on top of Pansy's head, and Harmony had grabbed two bottles of the Italian salad dressing and proceeded to pour them both on Blaise's head. The two Slytherin pure-bloods shoved the two new girls into the table, where said girls each grabbed a bowl of fresh salad and turned them over above Parkinson and Zabini.

"Normally, I'd eat a salad that I made, but these two look like rotting salads that have been left out in the sun for over a week. How disgusting! Don't you agree, Harmony?"

Harmony nodded before shoving Zabini out of her way, heading over where her sister was standing at the Gryffindor table. Lullaby just stared at Pansy and scoffed.

"You know, at the Platform, I knew you were all talk and no action. You think that you're such hot shit but I know that the only ones that are 'hot shit' are the ones that can go into a fight and come out a victory, whether the fight was verbal or physical. You really should learn to pick your fights a bit better, Parkinson. At the age of ten, I was capable of kicking a sumo wrestler's ass. I truly believe you would've been a broken toothpick in less than five seconds against one. Toughen up, then come challenge me to a fight. Just be aware of the fact that you'll still lose."

And with that, Lullaby pushed passed Parkinson and walked victoriously toward the Gryffindor to stand with her arms around Harry and her two best friends right beside her.

Up at the head table, Dumbledore sighed, catching the attention of both Minerva McGonagall and Severus Snape.

"I fear that we have more on our plates than we can handle. Remus sent me a letter just after the train left the station, informing me that Lullaby has gotten into a few fights in the past month, the most recent on the Platform with Miss Parkinson. And the first one was right before the World Cup with young Malfoy. She also has gotten into a fight with Harry's muggle cousin, Dudley Dursley."

The Headmaster turned to face the Potions Master.

"Severus, please keep an eye on Lullaby. Her mother died about two months ago and she's a little depressed right now. Probably will be for a while. From a young age, she's had anxiety attacks. When she first started at Winterland, she developed separation anxiety and that lead to sleep problems. She's on four different medications: Valium for anxiety, Trazodone for depression, Valerian for her sleep disorder, and Ranitidine for her acid reflux. She can't have certain foods without having her Ranitidine first."

Severus nodded. Albus turned to face the students and announce that it was time for bed and that he'd see them all bright and early for breakfast at eight o'clock. Before he dismissed the students, he asked that Lullaby, Harry, and the Nikols' twins stay behind.

The prefects of each house lead their housemates to their respective houses. The four students walked up to where the Headmaster stood waiting for them, with McGonagall and Snape on either side of him.

"I would like to make it clear that there will be no fighting tolerated here. I ask that Lullaby take all her medications on time everyday, and that if there are any moments that any of you feel close to having a breakdown during class, that you ask your professor if you can step out into the hall for a few minutes to calm down. Professor Snape will ask the other students in Slytherin to back off and leave you alone until such time that you deem it okay for them to approach you. Now, Harry give either Lullaby or Harmony the medications then you and Melody follow Professor McGonagall to Gryffindor Tower. The password is Animus."

Harry nodded and handed Lullaby her medications before pulling her into a tight hug, kissing her cheek as he pulled away, whispering his wishes for her to have sweet dreams into her ear before he followed Melody and his Head of House to Gryffindor Tower.

Severus waited until Dumbledore left for his office before escorting his two new fourth years to the Slytherin Common Room, silencing them every time they started talking to each other. Once they were standing outside the Common Room, Severus turned to the two girls and gave them a very stern warning.

"Now, I want to make it perfectly clear to the both of you: I will tolerate no fighting between the Slytherins. I will order them to leave you alone, but that does not mean the two of you can instigate a fight. Have I made myself clear?"

The two girls nodded to their Head of House, and listened as he said the password, Callidus, to the Slytherin Common Room, and followed the man into the room, which was filled with noisy and excited first years, and relaxed and conversing second through seventh years. The whole room settled into silence when Professor Snape entered with Lullaby and Harmony behind him.

"First, I want to welcome the first years to Slytherin. Watch the older Slytherins and ask them for help if you need it. Second, I want none of you to be starting any fights with each other or Miss Lupin or Miss Nikols. We have already established that they will stay out of your way if you stay out of theirs. And third, I will be back in one hour, and if I see any of you out of bed, I will hand out detentions to the offender or offenders. I will be checking into your rooms to make sure all of you are in bed and asleep, so hurry to bed soon. Good night."

After Professor Snape left the room, questions burst forth like water from a broken dam. To their credit, Parkinson, Zabini, and Malfoy stayed where they were, and stayed quiet, except to converse amongst themselves. Theodore Nott walked up to Harmony and Lullaby and introduced himself.

"Hello, I'm Theodore Nott. Please, call me Theo. I feel I must apologize for how Blaise and Pansy behaved toward the two of you during the feast. Pansy gets so un-fucking-believably jealous of any girl that's hotter than her. And Blaise is just a very horny teenager who hasn't had any girl say 'no' to him since he lost his virginity last year. If you need help with anything, please feel free to ask me, no matter what time of the day or night. Just don't go near Millicent Bulstrode, Vincent Crabbe, or Gregory Goyle. Crabbe and Goyle are Draco's cronies, and Millicent happens to be Pansy's best friend. Well, we should be heading to bed. Professor Snape isn't kidding when he says he'll be checking on us."

Lullaby and Harmony followed Theo to the door of the fourth year girls dormitory, where they bid him good night and got ready for bed. Once they were under the covers, they set their alarm clocks and wished each other sweet dreams before turning their lights off.

- - - - -

In the Gryffindor Common Room, a 'Welcome Back' party was just getting underway, much to Harry and Melody's displeasure. Normally, Melody loved a school party, but without her sister and best friend, she just didn't have the energy to really get into socializing. Hermione, Ron, and Ginny were sitting on the couches by the fireplace waiting for Harry and Melody to show up. Melody leaned onGinny's shoulder and simply stared into the fire, and Harry joined Ron in a game of Wizard's Chess.

"So, is Dumbledore mad at Harmony and Lulls for getting into a fight during the feast?"

"Not ready. He was more or less disappointed that the fight started not long after the girls were sorted. He let us know that he won't be tolerating fights, and that Lulls has to take her meds on time every day. I left the meds with Lullaby and I know that Harmony will make sure she takes them. I'm just worried that Lullaby will have an anxiety attack tonight and I won't be there for her."

Ron won the chess games and challenged Melody, who, in less than five minutes, kicked his ass, much to the surprise of the Gryffindor students. Not even the most experienced Gryffindors were able to beat Melody at Wizard's Chess, which crushed their spirits a little bit, but it gave them more of a challenge, so there was a good side to their defeats. Finally, at midnight, Professor McGonagall entered the Common Room and announced that it was time for bed and that any lolly-gaggers would get detention for a week if they weren't in bed in ten minutes, which they all were.

Harry placed a picture of him and Lullaby on his bedside table before crawling under the covers, falling into a restless sleep.

Melody, despite Hermione's best efforts, was unable to fall asleep before one o'clock. Finally, Hermione handed her her sleep medication and a bottle of mineral water. It was going to be a very long and depressing weekend.


	29. First Morning WakeUp Call

Right at four o'clock, Lullaby's alarm began singing _'A Whole New World'_ as a rather high volume, and began getting on her room mates' nerves, with the exception of Harmony. The whole song played through once before one of the other girls began to shout out a complaint.

"SHUT THAT DAMN THING OFF!!!! SOME OF US ACTUALLY LIKE TO GET OUR BEAUTY SLEEP!!!!"

The only fourth year girl in Slytherin that could shout coherently while sleeping deeply was Pansy Parkinson. A sigh from the other fourth year girls could be heard after Lullaby hit the 'Dismiss' button on her _Aladdin_ alarm clock. Lullaby got out of bed and began getting ready for the work-out, a knowing smirk playing on her lips. At four-ten, Harmony's _Beauty and the Beast_ alarm clock started going off. The two girls had set it up so that their room mates would know who was getting up, and at what time.

"SERIOUSLY, SHUT THE HELL UP!!!"

The next second was filled with the _thump_of pillows landing over heads to block out the noise. Lullaby sent a double thumbs-up Harmony's way, and the two girls exchanged pleased looks over the fact that they found something to annoy their room mates with every day, and the other girls couldn't do a damn thing about it. Alarm clocks were perfectly legal, and if one of the girls went to complain to Snape, the only thing that would happen was the volume getting turned down.

As the two friends were getting dressed in their work-out clothes, they heard light creaking on the stairs outside of the dormitory door. Shaking it off for the moment, the girls quickly pulled their hair back into long single braids and twisted them into buns secured by scrunchies. When they deemed themselves ready, Lullaby and Harmony left their dormitory carrying their yoga mats and bottled waters. Upon entering the Common Room, the two girls noticed Draco Malfoy, Blaise Zabini, Vincent Crabbe, and Gregory Goyle sitting on the couches around the fireplace, while Theodore Nott was doing jumping jacks to keep himself awake.

"Oh, don't tell me. Let me guess: Our alarm clocks woke boys up, too."

Malfoy sent a glare Lullaby's way, and sarcastically gave an answer.

"Oh, no, not at all. We always get up at this time every day. It just takes Theo a little more time to fully wake up."

Blaise rolled his eyes.

"Of course, your fucking alarm clocks woke us up. Actually, they didn't really bother us. But they did wake up Pansy, and you now know how loud the bitching banshee can get, no matter what time of day. Please, we beg of you, turn the volume down. A happy and silent Pansy is our favorite one out of all the options there are. We'll leave you alone, or at least be civil with you if you just turn the volume down and keep Pansy quiet."

Lullaby nodded.

"Yeah, yeah. Sure, sure. We got to go. See you guys later. Bye, Theo."

As Theo waved to the girls as the left the Common Room, Blaise and Draco sent him matching glares, to which he just shrugged and headed back up to bed.

- - - - -

Right at four o'clock, '_Just Around The Riverbend'_began playing on Melody's alarm clock, and the only one in the Gryffindor fourth year girls dormitory that woke up listening to the song was Melody, due to the fact that she had given her dorm mates fair warning when they went to bed, and the fact that Hermione had transfigured muggle pencil erasers into earplugs for the other occupants in the room. Quickly getting dressed and pulling her hair back into messy pigtails, Melody grabbed her yoga mat and two bottles of water before heading out the dormitory door to make sure Harry got up.

_BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!_

_BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!_

Slapping the 'alarm off' button, Harry rolled out of bed and began pulling his work-out clothes from his trunk just as Melody came into the room, smiling brightly, and greeted him cheerfully.

"Good morning, Harry. It seems that Lullaby whipped you into shape when it comes to getting up at four-fifteen, or in this case, four o'clock. Chop-chop, move your butt a bit faster. You get dressed, and I'll grab the cloak, the map, and your yoga mat."

Grumbles from the other occupants in the room entered Melody's ears and when she looked up, she saw that Seamus, Dean, and Neville had half-awakened and were currently in sitting positions, trying to figure out what time it was without focusing their eyes on a clock.

"Good morning, boys. You can go back to sleep. It's only four-ten."

Seamus looked puzzled.

"Then what are you and Harry doing getting up?"

"Lullaby, Harmony, and I always start working out at four-thirty in the morning. We recruited Harry in August, and Lullaby has done an impressive job at training him to get up so early. Well, we'll see you guys later on, okay? Bye."

Harry and Melody left the room, and before they left the Common Room, they checked the map and placed the cloak around the two of them, and quickly, but quietly, made their way down to the entrance Hall and met up with Harmony and Lullaby before the small group of four headed down to the lake to begin their work-outs.


	30. First Morning WakeUp Call Part Two

At six-forty-five, Harry entered the dormitory, stumbling and limping slightly, after he finished his work-out with the girls at six-thirty. All of his dorm mates snapped awake and looked at him with concerned expressions on their faces. When Harry finally saw his appearance in the the mirror, he sighed and turned to face his friends.

"No, I wasn't attacked. Okay, I was, but it was the work-out, alright? Lullaby kicked the asses of Harmony, Melody, and I. Harmony kicked mine and Melody's asses. But I finally managed to kick Melody's ass. It's like each of them is a different level for me to beat. Melody: Beginner Level. Harmony: Intermediate Level. And Lullaby is the Expert Level."

"Okay, but that doesn't explain why you're dripping wet, have a bloody nose, and a busted lip."

"Lullaby knocked me into the lake… and we were ten feet away from the edge of the lake. Melody is the one that busted my lip. Her elbow met my mouth and caused my teeth to split open my bottom lip. Harmony head-butted me, hard enough to cause a bloody nose, but not hard enough to break it."

Neville and Ron both went pale.

"S-so, these girls are pretty m-much lethal in a f-f-fight?"

"Yes, Neville, they are."

Seamus and Dean looked pretty excited.

"Hey, do you think the girls would mind if we came along to check it out?"

"I'm sure they'll be fine with it. Just don't wear clothes that could resemble work-out clothes. They'll pull you into the fights for sure."

The boys all nodded, before pulling their blankets back over their heads to go back to sleep for another couple of hours. Harry, on the other hand, grabbed some fresh clothes and headed for the boys' showers to clean up and get ready for the day.

- - - - -

Hermione opened her eyes just as Melody entered the room, skipping and whistling a cheery tune to herself, a few scratches on her arms and her left cheek. The scratches weren't deep enough to bleed, but they were deep enough to be the red-pink color that they were. And her hair was even messier than it had been when she left. In fact, one of her pigtails was completely pulled out of it's hair tie.

"Oh, Melody, what happened to you?"

"Harry finally managed to kick my ass during the sparring part of our work-out. Lullaby was so proud of him. Now, he'll be able to win against me more often, and at the same time, he'll be working even harder to beat Harmony. It'll take him months before he'll be able to beat Lullaby."

Hermione couldn't help the giggles that were longing to burst forth. Her body was shaking from her trying to keep the laughter in.

"You missed it, though. Lullaby and Harry were ten feet a way from the water's edge, and she sent him flying into the lake. It was so cool."

Melody began gathering her clothes when Hermione didn't say anything. Hermione snapped out of her daze and began picking out her clothes as well. Exchanging small smiles, the two girls went into the bathroom and began to get ready for the day ahead.

- - - - -

Harmony and Lullaby had just walked into the Slytherin Common, talking and laughing about Lullaby's awesome kick, with which she had sent Harry flying into the lake. On the couches, Malfoy and Zabini had stretched out and went back to sleep about half an hour after the girls had left. Crabbe and Goyle had followed Theo up to the dormitory.

"Harmony, look. They're sleeping. We gotta be 'quiet'. Come on, let's go shower."

The two girls exchanged sly smiles and tip-toed towards the stairs. Lullaby had pretended to be distracted and ran into the end table that was near Malfoy's head, knocking the table over and sending the glass snake figure to the floor, causing it to shatter, and the two sleeping boys to jump awake.

"What's going on? Oh, it's you. What happened?"

"I 'accidentally' knocked over the end table. Sorry we woke you boys up. Go back to bed."

"Can't do that now. We're completely awake now. What time is it?"

Harmony looked at the clock on the wall.

"It's about six-forty-five. Our work-out was two terrific hours of adrenaline rush and keeping our bodies in shape. Oh, man, you should've been there! At the end of our sparring session, Lullaby kicked Harry's ass and sent him flying into the lake. And they were ten feet away from the water's edge. It was awesome."

At that moment, Theo, Crabbe, and Goyle ran down the stairs, all of them having heard the crash.

"Hi, Theo. Sorry about waking you up. I walked into the end table."

"It's alright. I had just left the bathroom after taking a shower when I heard the crash. I decided to get dressed instead of running down here in my robe."

"Smart man. Now, Lullaby and I will be taking our showers, then heading to breakfast. You can come with, as long as you're not jerks. And Parkinson stays behind."

The boys all shrugged when Lullaby and Harmony went up to their dormitory to shower and get dressed.


	31. Quick Fights & Fast Forgiveness

Breakfast in the Great Hall was relatively uneventful, with the exception being Lullaby, Melody, and Harmony lecturing every possible student about their eating habits and food preferences, even going as far as to annoy the students from the other houses.

After breakfast, Harry, Ron, and Hermione showed Lullaby, Melody, and Harmony around the school and the grounds, even though they pretty much had the same classes. As the Gryffindor trio was leaving the Entrance Hall to introduce the new girls to Hagrid, three large buckets of ice-cold water were dumped over Harry, Ron, and Hermione. Lullaby, Melody, and Harmony turned around when they heard some laughter coming from the direction of the stairs that went down to the dungeons.

Lullaby started walking in the direction of the laughter, and got extremely angry when she saw who it was.

"MALFOY!!!!!"

Malfoy stopped laughing in time to see Lullaby reach for the front of his robes and lift him a foot off the ground, and with only one hand.

"I thought I told your father to keep you and your friends away from Harry and his friends."

"He told me no such thing, Lupin. And pray tell, why would he agree with you on anything of the sort?"

An evil smile made it's way to Lullaby's lips before she replied in a soft voice that had a menacing tone to it.

"Because I have a handy bit of information on him that, if revealed to the Ministry, could get him tossed into Azkaban for a minimum of twenty years, if not longer. You see, pure-bloods aren't the only ones that can dig up dirt on someone, and use the blackmail to achieve their ends. Why do you think I was put into Slytherin?"

"I don't know, and I don't care."

Lullaby, still holding Malfoy off the ground, placed the young man against the wall, a furious look on her face, a growl starting low in her throat.

"I was placed into Slytherin, Malfoy, because of my persuasive abilities. I know all, I hear all, and I see all. You, and your friends, stay away from my friends, Harry, and his friends if you want to keep your father out of prison, and stop any shame from tarnishing your family name."

Lullaby released Malfoy and he slid to the floor, leaning against the wall, while the girl turned and walked away, catching Harry's hand in her's and linking their fingers together, and lead the small group out of the school and onto the grounds

Once the group of six were halfway from the castle to Hagrid's hut, Harry decided to break the silence.

"Wow! Lulls, that was unbelievable. I don't think I've ever heard of anyone getting in Malfoy's face, and to threaten him like that was just astounding."

Lullaby just shrugged, telling Harry that if she didn't see an improvement with the other Slytherins' by the next weekend, she was going to go straight to the Ministry. Nothing was better to bring down Malfoy's narcissistic ego than than threatening the blonde boy's family name, along with those of Crabbe, Goyle, Nott, and Parkinson. Even though Theodore Nott hadn't given her any grief, his father was still involved with Lullaby's mother's rape.

The group arrived at Hagrid's hut just as the half-giant was walking out to tend to his garden. Fang, Hagrid's large dog, bounced happily over to where the teens were standing.

"Harry, Ron, Hermione, good to see you. And you brought some more friends."

Harry gestured to each of the girls as he introduced them.

"Hagrid, this is Lullaby Lupin, and Melody Nikols, and Harmony Nikols. They just transferred from Winterland Academy over in the States."

"Is that so? Well, it's nice to meet you, young ladies. The only new students we ever get are the first years. So, are any of you three signed up for my class?"

"Which class is that, Professor Hagrid?"

"Just call me Hagrid when we're not in class, okay?" The girls nodded. "The class I teach is Care of Magical Creatures."

"Oh, Harmony and I are taking it. Melody will have a free period during that time."

"I see. And what other classes are you girls going to be taking, besides Care of Magical Creatures?"

Lullaby answered first.

"Well, during the week, I'll be taking Divination and Muggle Studies, and I've got a free period in there somewhere. Headmaster Dumbledore gave me permission to take Ancient Runes and Advanced Potions on Sundays. And in the evenings, I'll be in Choir Practice."

Harmony told the others what classes she was taking next.

"I'll be in Arithmancy and Muggle Studies, and I'll have a free period as well. Sundays, I have Ancient Runes and Advanced Transfiguration, and Choir Practice in the evenings."

Melody came forward and told everyone which classes she would be in.

"Um, I've got Divination with Lullaby, while Harmony's having her free period, Arithmancy with Harmony, while Lullaby's having her free period, and I'll be having my free period while Harmony and Lullaby are in Care of Magical Creatures. The three of us have Muggle Studies together. Sunday, I'll be in Advanced Herbology and Ancient Runes, and Choir Practice is in the evenings."

The only one that looked stunned by the girls' advanced classes was Ron, seeing as how he always procrastinates when it comes to his school work, and had never given a thought to taking any advanced classes. Melody started giggling when she caught the look on his face.

"Uh, Ron, you're staring. And you'll end up catching flies if you don't close your mouth. Unless, of course, you've decided that you're a frog instead of a human."

Ron jerked back into motion at that, his face slightly red from embarrassment.

"Sorry."

Everyone started laughing then, Fang barking loudly next to his chuckling owner. The happy atmosphere momentarily wiped the run-in with Malfoy from the minds of the students, at least until Hagrid asked his next question.

"So, which house are you young ladies in?"

"I'm in Gryffindor."

At the mention of the school's Houses, Lullaby became a bit flustered. With Lullaby refusing to announce their House, Harmony took the liberty of doing it herself.

"Lullaby and I are in Slytherin."

"Okay, and is there a reason for Miss Lullaby's changed attitude?"

Harry couldn't help the smile that crept onto his face.

"Malfoy dumped buckets of ice cold water on Ron, Hermione, and I. Lullaby chewed him out. Picked him up, with only one hand, until his feet were about a foot of the ground. I've never seen him look so intimidated. I was actually afraid for him, you know, for being at the mercy of Lullaby. I don't think I've ever seen him so paled and shocked. It was actually pretty funny. Well, we should probably head back inside for lunch. See you later, Hagrid."

Hagrid nodded, then turned and began walking into his garden, with Fang at his heels, while the six students trudged back towards the school.

Upon entering the Great Hall, Lullaby and Harmony headed over to the Slytherin table, while Harry, Melody, Ron, and Hermione turned to walk toward the Gryffindor table.

"Good afternoon, Theo. How are you?"

Theodore Nott was so surprised by the sudden appearance of the two girls that he began choking and coughing on the gulp of pumpkin juice had just taken. Professor Snape was about to get up from the Head table, but stopped when he saw Lullaby bring her hand up behind Theo and pat him on the back to help him reopen his air passages again.

Once Theo was capable of breathing and talking, he turned to face Lullaby.

"Thanks for that, though you could've waited to talk to me after I had swallowed, and I'm doing alright. How about you two girls? No one causing you any trouble, I hope."

Harmony spoke up before Lullaby could reply.

"We're doing alright as well. We had a small run-in with Malfoy a little while ago, but Lullaby took care of it."

"What did he do this time?"

"Dumped large buckets of ice cold water onto Harry, Hermione, and Ron."

"Figures it would've had something to do with the Gryffindors. I don't necessarily have anything against the House, but Slytherins and Gryffindors have never gotten along. Dumbledore's been trying to create House Unity, but hasn't succeed yet."

"Until now, anyway."

Theo looked up from his lunch and turned to face Lullaby again.

"What do you mean?"

"You know the three first year girls, Emily, Eliza, and Erica?" Theo nodded. "Well, one is in Gryffindor, one is in Slytherin, and the last one is in Ravenclaw. And the twin boys, Jason and Mason, are also separated. One in Slytherin, and the other in Gryffindor. And take a look at Harmony and Melody, her twin sister. Harmony's here in Slytherin, and Melody's over in Gryffindor. The houses will have to start tolerating each other, at the very least. They don't have to be friends if they don't wanna be, but they have to try to get along for that sake of the separated siblings."

Theo thought about it for a moment before nodding his agreement.

"You're right. Completely correct. How about we start with me? I'll go over and apologize to the Gryffindors, and hope that they will forgive me, and forget the past. They might not, but at least I tried, right?"

Harmony and Lullaby nodded and got up from the table, with Theo right behind them, and headed over to the Gryffindor table. Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, Zabini, Parkinson, and Bulstrode all looked venomous, and Severus Snape was watching his precious Slytherin walk into the Lion's Den, so to speak, with hidden nervousness.

The Gryffindors all began whispering when the three Slytherins began walking down the table, heading for Harry, Meldoy, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny, who sat between Hermione and Melody when she joined them for lunch.

"Hey, you guys. Theo wanted to say something to you."

Lullaby ushered Theo forward just as Harry stood up. His voice shaking slightly now, Theo looked at Harry, and began his apology.

"I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for my behavior over the past three years. I just followed the example of the rest of my house mates, and kinda pushed aside my real self. I don't have anything against Gryffindors, despite what my past behavior suggests. Lullaby just pointed out that since both of our Houses have separated siblings, like Harmony and Melody, Jason and Mason, and Emily, Erica, and Eliza, who is in Ravenclaw, that we should just lay aside the differences and at least get along, if not become friends, for their sake. And I whole-heartedly agree with it. I'm truly sorry for my actions in the past, and I hope that you can forgive me."

Harry looked to his friends, who were shocked, and then over at Lullaby and Harmony, before sighing and stretching out his hand toward Theo, much to the surprise of everyone in the Great Hall.

"Apology accepted, Nott. And I hope we can be friends."

Theo visibly relaxed and shook Harry's hand, much to Lullaby's relief. Theo wasn't the same asshole Zabini and Malfoy were, and he wasn't as stupid as Crabbe and Goyle. And Harmony could see Hermione sneaking interested glances Theo's way.

It was a great start to the beginning of the school year, though Snape didn't think so.


	32. Monday Morning Classes

The whole school talked about one thing for the rest of the weekend: Theo the Slytherin was now hanging out with the Gryffindor trio, and company.

Parkinson was positively livid, Malfoy was ready to start foaming at the mouth, and Zabini was trying to keep the peace in Slytherin. And while everyone in Slytherin was less than thrilled with this new development, Professor Snape was nearly going crazy with trying not to take points from Nott every single time he was hanging out with the Gryffindors. The unnaturally surly Professor had grown worse with his constant grumbling, taking points for every little thing, and had become even more silent and withdrawn than before.

Monday morning brought with it a bright blue, cloudless sky, very warm temperatures, and a breath-taking golden glow over everything the sun touched. And right on time, Harry, Melody, Lullaby, and Harmony were out by the Black Lake, this time with Theo, Seamus, and Dean joining them to observe.

Lullaby kicked Harry into the lake again, twice this time, which made the three onlookers laugh and clap with amusement. Harry managed to beat Melody, and nearly conquered Harmony, except that she had tripped him at the last second, and sat on him once he was on the ground.

Breakfast had been a relatively quiet affair. At the Gryffindor table, Hermione spent the whole time reading a book, while Harry, Ron, and Melody talked about Quidditch. And over at the Slytherin table, Lullaby sat between Harmony and Theo, all three of them laughing at some joke or story one of them had told. One time during breakfast, after McGonagall and Snape handed out their houses' tie sheets, Lullaby sent up a ribbon and asked Melody and Harry what class they had first. Melody sent up the message: _We Both Have Double Potions_. Harry used the ribbon to ask what class their Slytherin friends had first, and Harmony replied with: _The Same As You_.

In the dungeons, Harry sat with Lullaby, Ron with Hermione, and Melody with Harmony. Theo had been given the cold shoulder by his housemates, so he paired up with Neville, while Seamus worked with Dean. Since there was now an uneven number of students in the class, Parkinson and Bulstrode had Vanessa Gretz join them in the only group of three. Malfoy was working with Zabini, and Crabbe was with Goyle.

The only sound that could be heard in the room while they waited for Professor Snape to make his entrance was whispering between Harry and Lullaby, though no one could actually make out any words. The two students became deathly quiet when they heard the sound of a cloak swishing in the corridor just outside of the classroom. The door slammed against the wall after it was thrust open violently, causing every students to flinch before sitting straight, barely daring to breathe.

"Silence. (though there was no need, except a force of habit) Today, you'll be making Blood Replenishing potions, which I pray that you won't mess up, since half of them will be going up to the Infirmary. It's not so difficult a potion if you're adept at making potions. First, a little rearranging, so that I know at least one person per group will be smart enough to accomplish the task."

Snape walked beside each table, noting who was currently sitting with whom, and switching people if it was needed. The first two pairs two be mixed up was Crabbe and Goyle, and Malfoy and Zabini. Now it was Malfoy and Goyle, and Zabini and Crabbe. The next two pairs to be switched were Melody and Harmony, and Seamus and Dean. Melody was sent to work with Dean, and Harmony was to work with Seamus. Other than those four groups, the pairings were fine, even though Snape didn't like that two of his Slytherins were partnering with Gryffindors.

"Okay, now that the _talent_ has been spread around a bit more, the ingredients are on the board and in your books. For the instructions, turn to page 369, and begin. You have until the end of class to complete the potion, and place a vial on my desk, and the rest in as many flasks as you can, but only after I've made sure your potion is correct."

Sitting down at his desk, Snape began to plan for the next class he had with this group, which, since it included Potter, had already begun to give him a migraine.

With the dismissal, the class got to work, one person from each group heading to the storage room to get the ingredients while their partner set-up the cauldron and such.

When Lullaby returned with the ingredients, Harry could see that her face was slightly flushed from frustration. His eyes automatically looked in the direction of Malfoy, and sure enough, Malfoy was glaring over at Lullaby, a light pink tint in his cheeks. Sighing, Harry turned back to Lullaby, who had begun cutting, grinding, and chopping the ingredients according to the books' instructions.

"Uh, Lulls, do I want to know what just happened with Malfoy?"

And for the first time, Lullaby actually snipped at him.

"Not really, Harry. Trust me."

Harry put his hands up in mock defense, watching Lullaby work on the potion, helping only when he was asked, but mostly letting her work on it, since it seemed to help calm her down.

Once or twice, during the first half an hour, Harry glanced in Malfoy's direction, only to see the Slytherin mumbling angrily. Shrugging, Harry returned to his job, which was grounding a dry heart of a dragon into a fine powder, which took a little longer that he had thought, but that was fine since it was the last ingredient to be added anyway.

Finally, Lullaby told him that their potion was done and asked him to put some into a vial for her to take up to Professor Snape. Once he did, Lullaby took the vial and walked gracefully up to the desk and presented her potion to Snape, who looked at it a moment before taking it from her and examining it. Snape stood up from his desk.

"Everyone, I want your potions to be this exact color, or exceptionally close to it. For the first time, I have found a student that is capable of making a _PERFECT _Blood-Replenishing Potion. Ten points to Slytherin and Gryffindor, since one of each was in the group."

Lullaby nodded to Professor Snape before heading back to sit next to Harry, who was lining up flasks on the desk. They each took a ladle and began to fill each flask, which ended up being twenty-two. Snape looked at their table, was in the process of being cleaned after flasks were filled, and mentally counted the number of flasks, impressed that Potter hadn't managed to mess the potion up.

When the bell signaled the end of class, Lullaby and Harry left the room, holding hands, with fingers laced together. Ron was walking beside Melody, who looked ready to throw someone through a window, or off of the Astronomy Tower.

"Are you okay, Mel?"

Melody growled slightly.

"Just _peachy_, Ron. Dean reached around me to grab one of the scales and his hand brushed against my ass. On accident, or so he claims. Then, when we were filling the flasks, he kept asking if I was dating anyone, and kept trying to touch my ass again and again, no matter how many times I swatted them away or told him _No_. It was getting pretty annoying, if you ask me."

Ron shook his head, and put an arm around her shoulder carefully, watching for signs of discomfort, and told her that he's always been like that, since the year before. Melody looked at him and smiled. Hermione was walking from the room, talking with both Harmony and Theo, who kept brushing the back of his hand against hers, causing Hermione to blush slightly.

Neville left the room only moments before Seamus and Dean, who was telling Seamus about how he kept getting turned down by Melody, and Seamus was trying to stifle his laughter, and failing miserably.

Gryffindors and Slytherins had Double Defense Against the Dark Arts together, which pleased Lullaby and Harry to no end. In fact, all of their classes today were like that.

Before Defense Against the Dark Arts started, Zabini kept making passes toward Harmony, who simply ignored him, or insulted him, which impressed Malfoy a bit, since no girl at Hogwarts had ever turned his friend down. And once Mad-Eye Moody entered the classroom, piercing silence rang inside everyone's ears.

After roll call, Moody talked about the three Unforgivable Curses, and during the last half of the class, had each student feel what the Imperious Curse was like. Harry managed to break the control over him after a few minutes, which greatly surprised everyone. Lullaby, Melody, and Harmony were completely unaffected by the curse, and when questioned about it, they told everyone that they had been taught Occlumancy at their old school in the States, and their mind shields were too powerful for the Imperious Curse to break through, since it was a mind curse, after all.

When class was dismissed for lunch, Harry and Lullaby walked slowly down to the Great Hall, talking about one thing or another, while Ron, Melody, and Hermione walked quickly ahead of them. And Harmony was cornered right outside of the class room by Malfoy and Zabini.

"Honestly, can't the two of you just leave me alone?"

Malfoy smirked, and Zabini answered her.

"Frankly, no, we can't, and simply because you've got us both interested in you."

"I see. Well, I have no time or patience for dealing with people who care more about their inheritance than they do about other people. Good day."

Harmony began walking away, only to stop and turn to face the two boys.

"And quit staring at my ass. You want it, and I know you want it, but you can't have it, so just forget it."

And she continued on her way to the Great Hall for her lunch.


	33. Monday Evening Discussions

Lunch passed uneventful and slow. And the afternoon classes were the same, which really surprised Harry, since the Slytherins usually try to get the Gryffindors in trouble with the teachers. Of course, this only served to increase his paranoia, even though Harmony told him to relax. She had told Harry, Hermione, Ron, Melody, Lullaby, and Theodore what had happened with Zabini and Malfoy. Needless to say, they were pretty impressed. The fact that Malfoy and Zabini were called out on something they wanted, and had been denied, both shocked and impressed the four Gryffindors and the other two Slytherins in the group.

Dinner, however, was pretty eventful, seeing as how Malfoy and Zabini had an open space between them, and there was an empty space between Malfoy and Bulstrode, and another between Zabini and Parkinson. Clearly, Harmony was meant to be between the two boys, and Lullaby and Theo were to be placed next to two of the Slytherin bitches. Happy, happy, joy, joy for Harmony. NOT! Lullaby used her strength to push Malfoy towards Zabini, and then the two boys over by Parkinson. Theo sat next to Bulstrode, and Lullaby placed herself next to Malfoy, leaving Harmony to sit between her two friends, for which she was extremely grateful, even though Malfoy and Zabini were, literally, drooling and foaming in anger and frustration.

Up at the teacher's table, Dumbledore was lightly smiling, a sparkle in his brilliant blue eyes. McGonagall was trying not to laugh, and was doing a spectacular job at hiding her amusement. Snape, however, was not amused by the behavior of his three prized Slytherins, and the two new ones, since this whole thing was because of them.

Four Gryffindors were laughing loud enough for the people closest to them to hear, plus a few at another table, which happened to be Hufflepuff. Diggory looked slightly amused, knowing that, for once, Zabini and Malfoy would have to really work for something outside of their grades.

Melody praised her twin for not giving in this time, since a fifth year boy at their old school got her to cave with one flattering compliment, even though he broke up with Harmony after only a week because she wouldn't have sex with him. Harmony had learned from that mistake, and had practically sworn off dating until after she had graduated from school.

Ron watched Melody silently cheer on her sister. He knew that the bond between siblings was nearly unbreakable, but the bond between twins was twice as strong. Even if he was brave enough to try and ask Melody to go to Hogsmeade with him, he knew that Harmony would go into 'over-protective sister' mode, and that stopped him from taking the chance. She was insanely beautiful, and therefore out of his league. He didn't have the confidence his other siblings had. Even his younger sister, Ginny, was more confident than he was. His love life was basically none-existent. And would most likely remain that way.

Harry had watched as Lullaby used only half of her strength to push the two Slytherin boys out of her way, and was interested in watching her use all of her strength on the two obnoxious Snakes. Somehow, that image turned him on a bit, which left him extremely uncomfortable, since he was in a very open space with tons of people surrounding him. And he knew that Remus would kill him if he even thought about acting on his sudden feelings, and the idea of death by werewolf was something that helped him to get rid of his problem rather quickly.

Hermione was preoccupied by thoughts on how Theo seemed to have been completely content with brushing his hand against hers, even though he claimed it was an accident when she asked him about it on the way to lunch that afternoon. She knew that it was anything but an accident, but didn't want to call him on it, in case it left them both uncomfortable in each other presence. It was very strange that she enjoyed hearing him say her name when they were close to each other, but it just seemed right to her.

As soon as the dessert left the tables, the Nikols twins and Lullaby stood up and headed for the Choir room, where they were currently going over songs for Halloween, since it seemed to be an important holiday at the school. There were only two other Slytherins in the Choir: Vanessa Gretz and, surprisingly, Theo Nott. Lavender Brown, Pavarti Patil, and Neville Longbottom were the only other Gryffindors in the Choir.

In the library, Harry and Ron were talking, while Hermione was studying for a test that they were having the following Monday.

"Harry, what were you and Lullaby whispering about before Potions?"

"Oh, nothing really. Just stuff."

At that, Hermione looked up.

"And what kind of stuff needed to be talked about in a whisper if it was only nothing?"

Harry dropped his head on to the table they were at, and groan into the wooden top. He mumbled something, but his friends couldn't make out what he had said said.

"Come again, Harry? What was that?"

Harry lifted his head from the table, but looked down at the his lap instead of up at his friends.

"I said: We talked about a few wedding plans. It was her idea. She wanted to get started on them right away, to get some ideas, since we'll probably change things quite often. We've already had a several disagreements. She wants a yellow summer wedding. I want a light blue winter wedding. She wants carnations. I want roses. She wants a DJ. I want a Live Band. She wants a out-of-the-box outside wedding. I want a simple indoor wedding. We're complete opposites on everything. The only things we agreed on were the number of people in the wedding party, and going with wedding cupcakes instead of a traditional four-tiered wedding cake. It's probably a good thing we're starting the plans this early, otherwise we won't have a wedding planned out, and would end up eloping or something."

Ron and Hermione sat in silence as they watched Harry flush pink and drop his head back down onto the table. After a few minutes, Harry lifted his head and stared at his friends. He knew they were trying not to laugh at him because their cheeks were a deep pink color, and their shoulder were shaking slightly.

"It's embarrassing, I know. But she really thinks we should get started on plan based on the fact that we can't agree on almost anything."

The sound of Madam Pince's shoes lightly tapping on the floor of the library caused the trio to pack up their books and head for the door in search of a quiet, more private room to continue with this discussion, which Harry was completely dreading.

They ended up in the room directly across from the Choir room, and just in time, too, because the class was just ending, and the students were leaving the room. Lullaby caught sight of Harry, and motioned for Melody, Harmony, and Theo to follow her. Harry sighed but lead them into the room, anyway.

After everyone was seated on transfigured cushions, thanks to Hermione, harry cleared his throat and looked at Lullaby.

"You are in so much trouble."

"Me? What did I do?"

"Ron asked what we were whispering about in Potions this morning, and I told him and Hermione."

Lullaby smirked at Harry's embarrassing discomfort.

"Well, maybe everyone here can toss in some suggestions, since we can't seem to agree on most of the things."

Theo raised his hand, which was unnecessary, asked his question.

"What are we discussing here?"

Lullaby beat Harry to the explanation with only two words.

"Wedding plans."

Everyone except Harry started laughing uncontrollably. Harry wanted to leave the room, he was so embarrassed, but he couldn't move since Lullaby was currently sitting in his lap. Once Theo caught enough air in his lungs, he asked another question.

"What are you having a hard time agreeing on?"

"Oh, not much. Just practically everything."

At that, everyone, including Harry, laughed. Now that everyone was filled in on what was going on, Harry found it quite an enjoyable topic, even if it was still a little embarrassing.

"So, do any of you want to know what we have agreed on?"

Ron and Hermione nodded with the other three, even though they already knew.

"Okay. We're going to have wedding cupcakes instead of a big wedding cake. Less leftovers and less wasted food."

"And we've agreed on a total of six people in the wedding party, excluding ourselves."

Harmony raised an eyebrow.

"Have you picked out the wedding party yet?"

Harry nodded, and Lullaby listed the people they wanted in the wedding party.

"For the most part, anyway. We've also got the pairing picked out as well. Ron and Melody will be paired up, and Hermione will be paired up with Theo. Yes, we've noticed the way you all have been acting around each other during the weekend and during classes today. As for Harmony, weel, we'll have to wait until you show an interest in someone that we agree on."

Melody had a question she had wanted to ask for the past few minutes, but hadn't been able to ask because other people were talking.

"So, what are you disagreeing on? Maybe we can help."

Lullaby and Harry took turns answering.

"I want a light yellow summer wedding."

"Whereas I want a light blue winter wedding."

"I would like carnations."

"But I want roses."

"A DJ for me.

"Or a live band for me."

"Wild and out-of-the-box."

"Quiet and simple."

"Outdoors."

"Inside."

When they were done, Harry and Lullaby stayed quiet while the other occupants in the room burst into laughter again, this time rolling on the floor and clutching their stomachs. Finally, Theo, once again, spoke up after he managed to stop laughing like a lunatic.

"Well, I think you might need some help."

Harry couldn't help but retort in a sarcastic manner.

"Oh, do give us some advice, Theo. Bestow your eternal knowledge of wedding planning on us."

Theo looked like he was hit in the face with a fish.

"Well, light blue and light yellow make a light green color. Spring is between winter and summer. Carnation and roses are nice, but so many people use them. White lilies would be more appropriate, since Harry's mother's name was Lily. And if you go with the Saturday before Easter, you can use Easter lilies. An quiet indoor ceremony with an out-of-the-box reception outdoors is a good compromise for you."

Harry and Lullaby thought about that for a minute then looked at each other before turning to look at Theo.

"Brilliant! Now, what about the music?"

"It helps if you list the pros and cons of each choice. A live band can make the wedding a bit more personal for the couple, but a DJ is more appropriate for the music tastes of each guest. Live bands, I know for a fact, charge quite a bit more for their services than DJs do. DJs have more choices when it comes to songs to play, while live bands can only play a certain amount of songs before they end up repeating the songs again. The choice is for the two of you to make."

Hermione looked at the clock in the room just as Theo was finishing up his music comparisons.

"It's almost curfew, and you all still have to finish your assignments, don't you?"

Ron, Harry, Melody, and Harmony nodded their heads. When Theo and Lullaby didn't nod with the others, Hermione looked at them with questioning eyes. Lullaby answered.

"Theo and I did our Potions essay during Defense Against the Dark Arts. And during lunch, we worked on our Defense essay. In Charms, we did the essay during the last minutes of class. Same with History of Magic. Normally, Harmony and Melody are the same way, but Malfoy and Zabini won't leave Harmony alone, and Dean Thomas has been annoying Melody all day. They've been distracted by hormone-driven boys who can't take a hint."

Hermione nodded and everyone stood up, leaving the room for their respective Common Rooms. Harry and Hermione were discussing what had happened that morning in Defense when Moody had shown them the Unforgivable Curses, and even performed one of them on the students of the class.

About five yards behind them, Melody was walking beside Ron. They kept glancing at each other every few seconds, and shy smiles were exchanged between them. Finally, when they were a corridor away from their Common Room, Melody stopped and grabbed Ron's shirt, holding him back. After he gave her a puzzled look, Melody leaned in and placed a kiss on his cheek, thanking him for helping to keep Dean away from her as much as he could.

"It was no problem. He can be a prat sometimes. I just feel like I need to be around to help you when you need it. And not because we're friends."

As he finished talking, a bit of pink appeared on his face, showing he was a bit embarrassed for telling her that. Melody didn't seem to mind it, though, because she beamed brightly. As the two of them started walking again, Melody reached over and grabbed Ron's hand, lacing their fingers as the approached the painting of the Fat Lady.

After they gave her the password and entered the Common Room, Ron walked Melody over to the stairs that lead up to the girls' dormitories. He had noticed that Dean was watching Melody, and that caused him to become very protective of his new girlfriend. At the bottom of the stairs, Melody kissed Ron on the mouth, which shocked everyone in the Common Room, including Ron, Harry, and Hermione. When she backed away, she smile at him before heading up to her dormitory to work on her essays before she went to bed for the night.

Hermione knew better than to say anything, so she just went upstairs to help Melody with her essays, leaving Harry to deal with Ron, and possibly Dean, seeing as how the other Gryffindor boy looked like he was ready to murder Ron in cold-blood.

*****

In the Slytherin Common Room, Theo was sitting on one of the large, comfortable armchairs, while Lullaby was one of the couches, helping Harmony with her essays. Zabini and Malfoy came down the stairs from their dormitory carrying their school bags, apparently deciding to work on their essays in the Common Room as well.

When Harmony saw this, she packed her stuff and told Lullaby that the dormitory was a quieter place to work, then headed up to where the boys couldn't get to her. Lullaby said good night to Theo then glared at Malfoy and Zabini before following her friend to their dormitory.

Theo picked up a book and opened it so his dorm mates wouldn't see the smirk on his face, or the amusement in his eyes.


	34. A Date Is Set

The month went by very much the same way. Classes, Zabini and Malfoy hitting on Harmony, Ron and Melody inseparable, Hermione and Theo skirting around each other, unsure about starting a relationship, and Lullaby and Harry were spending as much time as possible together, usually planning for their wedding.

The professors watched how the two houses interacted, or didn't interact, with mild interest. Snape was still leaving the Gryffindors alone whenever he saw his Slytherins hanging around with them, which was almost all the time. Meals, bathroom, and curfew were the only things he looked forward to when it came to the students from the two houses seeming to be attached at the hips.

Finally, it was the night before the first Hogsmeade weekend of the school year, and the group was in the library, studying and talking about anything and everything. Lullaby and Harry were bent over a muggle notebook, writing down plans and ideas for their wedding. Ron and Melody were sitting in the corner of the booth, cuddling and snogging lightly, and trying to work on their essays. Harmony was reading up on different hexes, trying to get some ideas that might get the annoying duo in Slytherin to leave her alone. And Hermione and Theo were having a debate on the differences between Hogwarts and other magical schools for their History of Magic essays.

When it was almost curfew, they began to pack up their things and leave. Hermione looked up and noticed that everyone but her and Theo had already left the library.

"I wanted to ask you something, Hermione. Tomorrow is the first visit to Hogsmeade, and I was wondering if you wanted to go with me. You know, like on a date? I wanted to ask you earlier but everyone was so close, I just lost my courage, until after they had left."

Hermione didn't know what to say. She knew she had some feelings for Theo, but didn't really understand them. And she hadn't been sure if Theo felt anything for her, but now she did. When Theo started to turn away, apparently thinking that he wasn't going to get an answer, Hermione spoke up.

"Yes, I'll go with you tomorrow, Theo. It just kind of surprised me, that's all. I'll see you at breakfast. Good night, Theo."

Hermione smiled as she was leaving the library. And that smile remained on her face as she gave the password for the Gryffindor Common Room, and entered. To avoid any questions, she headed right up to her dormitory to get ready for bed and pick out her outfit for the next day. As she fell asleep, her mind brought forth all the possible things that would happen tomorrow, when her and Theo were on a date, in Hogsmeade.

Theo watched Hermione leave the library with a smile on his face. He left the library only a minute after she did, grinning like there was no tomorrow. He had done it! He managed to gather enough courage to ask Hermione out on a date, and she had said yes. As he walked down to the Slytherin Common Room, Theo couldn't help but humming merrily to himself. He stopped humming long enough to give the password, and continued to hum as he walked through the room until he reached his dormitory. The other Slytherins in the Common Room all noticed how Theo was over-the-moon happy, but none of them said anything about it. He had been acting strange just by deciding to hang out with the Gryffindors, and therefore, this was a result of another evening in their presence. Theo went to bed rather early, which was surprising since he normally stayed up until around two or three in the morning. He immediately started dreaming of the wonderful time he would have with Hermione the next day.


	35. Hogsmeade Trip Part 1

The only two girls in the Gryffindor girls' dormitory were Hermione Granger and Melody Nikols, both of whom were trying to pick out the perfect outfits for their Hogsmeade dates. Their hair was already done, as was their make-up.

Melody, after twenty minutes of trying to decide between three different outfits, finally picked out her baby blue, lacy, tea-length skirt with the matching white, long-sleeved blouse and white ballet flats.

Hermione only took ten minutes to decide between three outfits, and finally settled on knee-length, yellow, short-sleeved sundress that had blue butterflies decorating it, and her light blue flip-flops.

Both had their hair up in a pony-tail, and wore light blue eye make-up with light pink lip gloss. They truly looked stunning.

In the next room, Harry and Ron didn't try to hard with their outfits: simple khaki slacks, with light brown loafers. Harry wore a deep purple button down, while Ron wore a light blue one. They knew how their girls worked when it came to their outfits.

- - - - -

Down in the Slytherin Common Room, Lullaby paced in front of the fireplace, waiting for Harmony and Theo, while trying to ignore the looks she was getting from Draco Malfoy and Blaise Zabini.

Lullaby wore a simple knee-length, plum-colored skirt with a grey blouse that had sleeves that reached her elbows, and a pair of strappy, grey wedges. Her eye shadow was a deep purple color, and her lips were the color of a pink rose, a soft yet vibrant color. She had pulled her hair halfway up and curled the ends a little bit.

When Theo entered the room, he was wearing light blue slacks, a white blouse, and grey loafers. It was nothing flashy, but something that looked very nice on him.

Harmony finally entered the Common Room wearing a hot pink mini-skirt, a black halter top, and black knee-high boots with four inch heels. Her hair was left down, but crimped. Her eye shadow was a very bright pink with light grey/silver glitter, and her lipstick was a very deep, blood-red color, which suited her wild side.

- - - - -

The trip to Hogsmeade was uneventful, for the most part. Malfoy and Zabini were still trying to get Harmony to hang out with them, without getting themselves cursed by Lullaby or Melody.

Theo and Hermione left the group to head for Madame Puddifoots' Café, while Ron and Melody headed over to Honeydukes' Sweet Shoppe, leaving Harry with Lullaby and Harmony, and Malfoy and Zabini, unfortunately.

Harry suggested that they go have a drink over at the Three Broomsticks, which they did, and effectively lost the two Slytherin boys in the crowd. Once the three of them were seated, Harry began the conversation.

"Harmony, I know that we don't know each other very well, but I can't help but feel that you're feeling a little left out these days. Hermione is starting to date Theo, your twin sister is dating my best guy friend, and Lullaby and I are engaged. I think you should try to get to know some of the guys at school. Make some new friends. You don't have to have a serious relationship or anything, but having someone to hang out with while the rest of us are being romantic would help you get over the loneliness."

Harmony just glared at Harry before promptly standing up and leaving the Three Broomsticks. Lullaby released a sigh, and turned to look at Harry.

"Smooth, Harry. Real smooth. Now I see what Hermione meant when she said that you leap without looking. I told you to let me handle it. Now, because of what you said, Harmony is going to ignore us for a week or more. The chance that she's going to be hanging out with Malfoy and Zabini is about fifty/fifty now, if not seventy-five/twenty-five."

Harry muttered an apology, and pulled out the notebook that they had been using to write down their wedding plans.

- - - - -

Theo and Hermione had just received the tea that they ordered, and were still waiting on their lunch selection. Normally, Hermione would be talking about something she had read in the library, but today, she was unusually quiet, and it kind of worried Theo.

"Hermione, are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Why do you ask?"

"It's just that you normally talk about something in a book, and today, there's nothing. It's not exactly normally behaviour, from what I've observed from you."

"Oh. Sorry. Just a lot on my mind. That's all. Besides, I think you should pick a topic. It'll stop me from actually talking about something school-related."

"Okay. How about… some of our favorite things in the world?"

Hermione nodded, agreeing with the subject.

- - - - -

"Ron, can you get that box down for me? You're able to reach it."

After they left Honeydukes', Melody and Ron headed over to Zonko's Joke Shop, which surprised Ron, since he thought that Melody was a quiet, non-joking type of person.

As it turned out, she was the blonde, female version of him, Fred, and George. She loved to eat, had a major sweet tooth, and simply loved to laugh when someone tripped the trigger on one of her pranks.

Ron and Melody were having a great time in the joke shop with their backs to the door, and neither saw Harmony run past, heading up to the Shrieking Shack, and being followed by Zabini and Malfoy.


	36. Hogsmeade Trip Part 2

Harmony reached the Shrieking Shack and sat on a large rock, trying to catch her breath, when she heard the sound of two people running towards her. She turned to look over her shoulder and saw both Malfoy and Zabini racing towards her. She stood up and aimed her wand at them, causing them to stop where they were.

"What do you want now? Can't you see I'm not in the mood right now?"

Malfoy opened his mouth, but Zabini was quicker.

"We just wanted to talk with you. We saw that you were upset, and that your friends didn't bother chasing after you."

"Of course not. Harry and Lullaby are working on their wedding plans, and it's going to be a disaster."

"Why do you say that?"

"Because they can't agree on anything. Harry wanted a blue winter wedding, and Lullaby wanted a yellow summer wedding. Theo suggested having a green spring wedding, since it's a combination of what they both want. Their still deciding if they'll be getting a DJ or a band. That's been the topic for a month. All they've been doing is arguing and debating over that for the past month. I really should get back there. That was the plan: one of other in the group had to be there to keep the peace and make suggestions that would make them both happy, and today, it's my turn."

"So why are you out here?"

"Because Harry made a stupid speech about me needing to find someone to hang out with while the others are off being romantic. Personally, I don't need anyone besides them. I have a hard time trusting guys who have an interest in me since my first, and last, boyfriend broke up with me because I would have sex with him."

Zabini backed away, head down, nervous, since he really only wanted her for that one reason, and flinched when he felt Harmony's harsh glare aimed at him. Malfoy, however, stepped forward and looked Harmony right in the eye, a serious look on his face.

"I know I seem like that kind of person, but I'm really not. You can even ask Blaise. I've never made a move on a girl, unless I wanted her to do me a favor, like digging up dirt on someone. I have no romantic interest in those who gossip. I would like to get to know you before I take anything further. Would you like to accompany me to the Three Broomsticks, so we can get to know each other better?"

Harmony looked at him for a moment before her eyes flickered over to Zabini, who was slowly backing away, as if retreating.

"I would like that, Malfoy. Lead the way."

As Harmony and Draco passed Zabini, Harmony 'accidentally' stepped on his foot, hard, causing him to inhale sharply and wince. With a satisfied smirk, Harmony hurried to catch up to Draco, who offered her his arm like a gentleman, and she took him up on the offer.

When the two of them entered the pub, it was mostly empty, with the exception of Harry, Lullaby, Hermione, Theo, Ron, Melody, and the owner, Madame Rosemerta. As the two approached the group, they caught bits and pieces of what was being said.

"Honestly, you two, just because you didn't agree on something, that doesn't mean you can fire spells at each other, and in public, no less."

"Yeah, you could've really injured one of the patrons."

"I can't believe you, Harry. You must've really upset Harmony if she just stormed out of here. She was supposed to keep everything peaceful, and you chased her out of here."

"You're really lucky that all you did was shatter a few bottles."

Harry and Lullaby looked at the table, and muttered apologies. Harmony and Draco used that moment to sneak up on the others. Melody looked at her sister in disbelief.

"Harmony, you said you were going to avoid him at all costs."

Now, the rest of the group looked over at Harmony and Malfoy, no one saying anything for a few minutes. Malfoy moved to pull a chair out for Harmony, and waited until she sat down before he sat down himself.

The glares were starting to get on his nerves, but instead of snapping at them, he calmly told them that he and Harmony were going to be friends until they felt more comfortable before becoming a couple.

And with that, the firing of jinxes and curses commenced.


	37. Gryffindor and Slytherin Unite, Sort Of

The headmaster was not happy. Nor were McGonagall and Snape. Madam Rosemerta had firecalled Dumbledore to tell him what had happened at her pub. Four Gryffindors and four Slytherins in a group, and only one from each house were doing the actual firing of curses: Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy.

Currently, they were in the headmaster's office. Dumbledore sat behind his desk, with Snape on his right side and McGonagall on his left. In front of him, Harry and Draco sat in chairs while Harmony and Lullaby stood right behind them. Melody, Ron, Hermione, and Theo were leaning against the wall near the door.

"I am very disappointed in the both of you. Neither of you will be permitted to return to Hogsmeade until after Christmas, and hopefully from now on, there will be no more fighting between the two of you."

Draco nodded, but Harry opened his mouth to speak.

"Sir, Harmony said that she wanted to avoid Malfoy at all costs, then she walks into the Three Broomsticks on his arm. After all that has happened in the past between Malfoy and I, I will not trust him to be around our group."

"I understand, harry, but that's what it is: the past. Let bygones be bygones, and accept him into your group of friends, for the sakes of Harmony, Melody, and Lullaby."

Harry looked down at his shoes and nodded. He didn't like the idea, but if they lose Harmony, Melody and Lullaby would never forgive him, let alone speak to him.

"Now that that's settled, would any of you like a lemon drop?"

Everyone shook their heads.

"Very well, then. Go enjoy the rest of the day. Calmly, and peacefully, or all of you will receive detention."

The eight students nodded and left the office. Snape and McGonagall waited until the door had closed before turning to face the headmaster, both asking a silent question, to which the headmaster replied: "Sometimes, the best allies come from the most unlikely of places, and Harry is going to need more friends from here on out. The war is not over, and Voldemort will try to come back again. The greater our numbers, the greater the chance we have of defeating Voldemort."

The group was in the library, discussing what they were going to do. Harry and Draco were doing most of the debating, since it was because of them that they had to endure each others presence.

"Potter, I'm not trying to start a war with you. If you remember correctly, I offered to you friendship, but you turned me down. If anyone should be allowed to complain, it's me. We would've been friends for the past few years if you hadn't turned me down. But for Harmony, I'm willing to put aside our differences."

"That may be, but you've called Hermione a mudblood and Ron a poor blood-traitor. And your father, he raped Lullaby's mother in their fifth year. You would've had an older half-brother if your father wasn't so opposed to having an illegitmate child with a muggleborn witch. Lizzie Malkovich Lupin had gotten pregnant by your father and when he found out, he caused her to have a miscarriage. The name Malfoy doesn't sit well with Lullaby."

Upon finding out this information about his father, Draco paled. He knew his father was cruel, and that he hated and tormented muggles and muggleborns, but to go to that extent of causing such misery was a shock for him.

"I didn't know. I'm sorry, but father doesn't talk very much about his days at school, unless it benefits me to know. I was wondering why Lullaby was so cold towards my father. Now I know why. I'm terribly sorry, Lullaby, for what my father has done."

Lullaby looked away from Malfoy before she answered.

"Your apology is worth nothing to me. My mother is dead, and it's your father that should be apologizing. Daddy had the urn that her ashes are in. Lucius Malfoy can apologize to her ashes, and pray that she'd forgive him."

Malfoy hung his head for a moment before turning to look at Harmony. He realized that if she didn't have a hot pink stripe in her hair, they would almost be twins. Both had platinum blonde hair, silver-blue eyes, and extremely pale skin. Their physical build was almost the same as well. He couldn't figure out why he never noticed it sooner.

"But, for the sake of Harmony, I'll tolerate you. The first time I see you treating anyone in our group wrong, I'l knock your black off so fucking fast that it'll go flying around the world twice before stopping at your feet. And that's not a threat. It's a promise."

Malfoy nodded. He knew she was serious. When was she not? Her sense of humor was sarcasm. And it really didn't suit her athletic personality.

"I've got a question for you, Lullaby. What activities had you been in, besides Quidditch?"

A bright, 'I'm better than thou' smile appeared on Lullaby's face.

"I've been in ballet since I was two. And the star performer, no less. Martial Arts since I was four. I got the master's belt in only six years. Gymnastics since I was six. Best on the team. Same with figure-skating at age eight. When I was ten, I join the swim team, and beat out the best. Age eleven, I joined the Quidditch team, cheer squad, and dance squad. I became captain of the cheer squad and dance squad when I was twelve. And I would've been captain of my house Quidditch team if I hadn't transferred over here."

Malfoy and Theo both looked stunned. Neither had known about Lullaby's athletic past, or Harmony's, or Melody's. It amazed them that one girl could take on so many physical activities and not be worn out.

Supper came and went, and all students were in their Common Rooms, doing homework or socializing. An hour before midnight, Lullaby and Harmony bid Malfoy and Theo good night and headed up to their dormitory for the rest of the night.

"Draco, we should head to bed, too."

"Why?"

"Because those girls will come wake us up if we're not ready to go at four-thirty in the morning for the work-out."

Malfoy groaned, knowing that he would never be allowed to sleep in until noon like he usually did on Sundays.


	38. Beauxbatons, Durmstrang, & Little Tiffs

Another month passed, and it was a week before Halloween. Malfoy, Theo, Harmony, Lullaby, Hermione, Melody, Ron, and Harry were excited about the students that would be coming from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang. The house school was in an uproar about the arrival, because it meant that the Triwizard Tournament was going to begin, officially, that night.

The tables in the Great Hall had been changes so that instead of four long house tables, there were dozens of smaller circular tables that sat eight people to a table. The double quartet seated themselves at the table closest to the large doors, so that they could talk without being busted by the teachers.

Harmony was holding Malfoy's hand, and talking to her sister, who was holding Ron's hand. Malfoy and Theo were talking while Theo held Hermione's hand. Hermione and Ron were arguing across the table, leaving Harry and Lullaby to hold hands and talk amongst themselves for the moment. No one found it odd that Harry and Lullaby hadn't fought over wedding plans for nearly a month, not since the incident at the Three Broomsticks.

"Harry, I don't think we should. Not yet. Daddy won't be happy if he finds out about it."

"Lulls, we're engaged to be married anyway, not to mention, we're betrothed, so we'll have to be together anyway."

"Harry, we're only fourteen."

"So? There are students younger than us that have done it. Remember? It happened all the time at your old school."

"That's them and this is us. I don't to hear any more about it."

Before Harry could reply, the Headmaster stood up and silence fell upon the Great Hall.

"Ladies and gentlemen, tonight, we welcome our fellow witches and wizards with open arms and open hearts. First, I'd like to introduce the lovely ladies from Beauxbatons Academy in France, and their Headmistress, Madame Olympe Maxime!"

The doors to the Great Hall opened to reveal about twenty young ladies, all in blue, and a woman that looked to be Hagrid's equal in stature.

After the applause finally settled down, Dumbledore cleared his throat again.

"And now, let us greet our friends from the north. I'm pleased to welcome the proud sons of Durmstrang, and their High Master, Professor Igor Karkaroff!"

The Durmstrang students didn't enter with the same grace or grateful attitude the previous school had shown. Instead, they marched, showing arrogance, scowling at anyone who dared to smile at them.

Harmony leaned back into Malfoy's chest.

"You could give them some lessons in manners, Love. They're in desperate need of them."

At that, Harmony, Melody, Lullaby, and Hermione all fell into quiet fits of laughter, giggling behind their hands, while Harry, Malfoy, Ron, and Theo were red in the face from trying not to laugh.

The rest of the tournament officials were introduced and the rules about entering the tournament were announced. After the feast, where Harry and Lullaby continued their little argument in hushed voices, the Goblet of Fire was brought out and placed in the center of the Great Hall. The tables would remain as they were until after the Goblet had chosen the three champions on Halloween night.

Harry lay in his bed, listening to the giggles coming from the girls' dormitory. No doubt that Melody was giving Hermione a not-too-different make-over, and the two of them were giggling while doing their nails. Hearing the door to his dormitory open, Harry looked over to see Ron staring at him from the doorway.

"Harry, what's up between you and Lullaby? I noticed that the two of you had a little tiff, and now she seems a bit miffed with you. What happened?'

Harry rolled off his bed and walked over to the window, and sighed.

"Ron, shut the door, would you? I don't want anyone else to know."

Closing the door as quickly and quietly as he could, Ron moved to stand beside Harry at the window, staring out at the rain that had started to fall."

"Ron, the reason Lulls is mad at me is becaused I asked her to do something she is firmly set against. I kept pushing the issue, wanting her to break down and give in to the idea."

"And what would that be, Harry?"

Ron turned to look over at his nest friends and noticed tears silently rolling down his cheek.

The Slytherin Common Room was mostly deserted, which was extremely odd, but welcome none the less. Lullaby, Harmony, Theo, and Malfoy were sitting on the couch or in armchairs in front of the bright, warm fire. Nobody said anything, and for that, Lullaby was grateful. Her fight with Harry had upset her enough without the rest of the group getting involved.

Out of the two Slytherin boys, Theo was more observant to the feeling and emotions of others. He noticed that Lullaby had staarted crying silently in her corner of the couch, her eyes never blinking as she stared into the flames, the only source of light in the room at the moment.

He couldn't take it anymore. He had to get her to say something, anything.

"Lullaby, I noticed that you and Harry were arguing during the feast. Now, you're upset, and I want to know why. I'll take away your alarm clack and your workout clothes if you don't tell us what the problem is."

Theo's harsh tone caught Harmony and Malfoy's attention. Now the two of them had finally noticed that Lullaby was not acting like herself. Lullaby never cried if she could help it. She never let anyone get under her skin. And she always saw the bright side of things, never the dark.

"Harry requested something from me that I'm not capable of giving to him. Not yet, anyway. He kept pushing the subject. I'm giving the silent treatment until Halloween, after the Champions are chosen. Or until he apologizes. Whichever comes first."

Harmony's panic levels went sky-high now. Lullaby had never gotten so stressed out from a simple argument before.

"Lulls, sweetheart, what did Harry want you to do?"

Shoulders shaking violently, her lips quivering, and tears flowing freely from her eyes, Lullaby looked over at her 'second-in-command' and took a deep breath.

"He asked me to …"

What Harry had asked her to do what wnever uttered, as Lullaby broke down, crying and rocking, her hand twitching to put her thumb in her mouth like she had down when she was upset as a child.

_**Lots of love to those who review and tell me what they think Harry asked Lullaby to do! Sorry it takes me so long to update!**_


	39. A Very HARRY Situation

The week leading up to Halloween was extremely tense. Lullaby, Harmony, Draco, and Theo ignored Harry and used Ron, Hermione, and Melody if they needed to tell the boy something. Out of the other three Gryffindors, Ron was the only one who knew the reason why Lullaby and Harry weren't on speaking terms. And while the other three Slytherins didn't know what Harry had wanted, they gave him the silent treatment simply because whatever he had asked for had upset Lullaby to tears.

The morning of Halloween finally came and still Harry hadn't apologized. Lullaby had never felt more frustrated. He had been so shy, sweet and timid when they met, but nearly three months later he asked her to do _that_. It just wasn't in his character to be so pushy about something as trivial as that, and that was what frustrated Lullaby the most.

As the quartet of Slytherins waited in the Entrance Hall for the four Gryffindors, they heard an argument between Professor Snape and an unknown male voice coming from an alcove to the right of them. A swish of robes could be heard before the headmaster of Durmstrang, Karkaroff, came into view. Sneering at them, he turned and left the castle, no doubt heading for the lake, where his ship had been anchored. Only moments later, Snape appeared, looking just like Lullaby felt.

As he swept past them, heading down to the dungeons, the Gryffindors finally came down the stairs, with the girls looking murderous, Ron looking sick to his stomach, and Harry looking like the living dead. Apparently, Hermione and Melody finally found out what the deal was with Harry and Lullaby, because they had suddenly decided to give the boy the silent treatment as well. Now, Ron was the only one they would be using to deliver messages to Harry, if it was needed.

Harry and Draco had to stay behind until after Christmas, so they said good-bye to the others and headed down towards Hagrid's cabin, seeing as how there was nothing better to do until the evening.

In the Three Broomsticks, the sextet sat at a table in the far back corner, so that no eavesdropped could hear them. Lullaby was almost in tears again for the tenth time in a week, and they wanted to shield her from public embarrassment. However, she was still going to be embarrassed if they managed to get her to give them the details of what was upsetting her.

"Lullaby, Harry told Ron, Hermione, and Melody what he had asked you, but they won't say what it is. Please, for the love of Merlin, tell us."

Theo just wouldn't give it a rest. He had been bugging Lullaby about it for a week straight, and hadn't managed to get her to crumble yet. It just wasn't fair that the Gryffindor half of their group knew.

"FINE! You want to know what Harry wants from me? (Theo and Harmony nodded, serious looks on their faces.) Harry wants me to have sex with him… tonight. It's not like Harry to ask for something like that. I'm mad at him for asking, and he's mad at me for saying 'no'. it's the thirteenth anniversary of his parents' death, and he wants to have sex. It also happens to be the fifteenth anniversary of the day we were conceived. I thought it was a joke at first, but he kept pushing the subject. I love him but I can't do that, not yet."

No one said anything for nearly five minutes. It had been hard for Lullaby to tell them what the problem was, and she was crying with her head in her arms, which were crossed on the table. Halloween was not going to be very fun for them this year.

The inside of Hagrid's hut was filled with the scent of pumpkin spice and mulled cider. Normally, Draco would've said something insulting, but that would upset Lullaby, and that was not a good thing at the moment. Harry lead the blonde teen over to the large table and they waited while Hagrid poured them each a cup of the cider, and piled homemade pumpkin spice cookies onto a plate.

Harry was extremely hesitant about trying the cookies, having known how Hagrid's baking usually turned out. Draco, on the other hand, did not have such a worry and picked up a rather large cookie from the top of the pile. One bite, and Draco was in Heaven.

"These are really soft, Professor Hagrid."

"We're not in class. It's just Hagrid."

"Of course. How is it that you're able to make these cookies so soft, when my family's house-elves always end up burning them?"

"Do they now?" Hagrid said, chuckling. "I'm no expert on house-elves, so I won't be able to answer your question. Go on, Harry. Try one."

And so, to please Hagrid, Harry did try a cookie, and it turned out that Draco was quite right. The cookies were soft, moist, edible without breaking teeth. The three of them sat talking for a while, until Draco looked out the window, and saw the rest of their group heading back towards the school; Lullaby being held up by Harmony and Theo. Standing as quickly, but gracefully, as he could, Draco headed to the door of the cabin.

"I'm sorry I can't stay longer, but the others are back, and with the way Harmony and Theo were holding onto Lullaby, I think something might be wrong."

In a flash, Draco was out the door, running as fast as he could up to where the others were. Harry hadn't bothered to follow him out. Not surprising, really, since Lullaby didn't want to be near him for a while.

"Hey, you guys. What's going on? Is Lullaby okay?"

Ron, Hermione, and Melody looked at each other and moved away from the blonde boy, knowing that when he found out what had happened a week earlier, he would most likely blow a gasket.

Theo sat Lullaby next to Harmony on the bench, and turned to looked at Draco.

"No, Lullaby is not okay. In fact, she is the opposite of okay. she told us what Potter had asked her to do, and I'm telling you this right now: Potter is a dead man."

Theo stalked off down to Hagrid's hut, where he knew Harry would be, since Draco had just come from there.

Draco turned to the others, confusion written on his face. Ron cleared his throat to tell him what the problem was.

"It turns out that Harry had asked Lullaby to have sex with him, tonight. It's been thirteen years since his parents died on Halloween, and fifteen years since the two of them were conceived. Lullaby did not take kindly to the suggestion."

Draco saw red and turned on his heel, chasing after Theo, who was almost to Hagrid's when Harry stepped outside to head back up to the castle.

"POTTER!"

Harry flinched for a moment, until he saw Theo, as mad as a Hatter, and as wild as a buffalo, charging right for him, and Draco not too far behind. Harry started running up to the school, glad that his cousin, Dudley, and his friends, had come up with the game of 'Harry Hunting', otherwise, he'd never be able to outrun the two Slytherins.

Stopping in the Entrance Hall to catch his breath was the stupidest thing Harry could've done with two mad Slytherins chasing him. Theo and Draco both crashed into him, and soon the three of them were wrestling on the floor. A familiar clicking of the heels left them know that Professor McGonagall had just arrived on scene.

"POTTER, NOTT, MALFOY! MY OFFICE, NOW!"

Now, there was Hell to pay.


	40. Inside McGonagall's Office

As the three boys followed McGonagall to her office, all Harry could think was _'SHIT! SHIT! SHIT!'_ The moment he had heard Theo call out his name, with Draco right behind him, he knew that they knew, and that they would waste no time in telling a professor what the whole problem was. And currently, the only professor that they were going to be speaking to was his own Head of House. His day just kept getting worse, no matter what.

Reaching McGonagall's office, the two Slytherin boys and Harry silently moved to separate sides of the room, which caused the Transfiguration professor to raise an eyebrow, since for the past month, the three were nearly inseparable.

McGonagall sat in the chair behind her desk, staring at the three male students silently for a minute before turning to face Theo.

"Mr. Nott, would you like to explain to me why you and Mr. Malfoy felt it was nessasary to chase and tackle Mr. Potter?"

Theo looked down at his feet for a moment before sighing. As he looked up at the stern teacher, he gulped.

"Actually, I would just like to tell you that the reason for mine and Draco's behavior is one of the results of a disagreement between Harry and Lullaby. I think that you should just give Draco and I detention, and have this discussion with Harry and Lullaby."

Harry glared at Theo, which prompted McGonagall to agree with the Slytherin fourth year.

"Very well. Mr. Nott, Mr. Malfoy, detention tonight right after the feast, until midnight. Mr. Nott, you'll be serving detention with me, and Mr. Malfoy, you'll be with Mr. Filch. The two of you are dismissed. One of you escort Miss Lupin up here immediately, please. Mr. Potter, you stay right there."

The four last words from McGonagall's mouth before the unnerving silence practically sealed Harry's doom. He knew that once the whole story was out, he'd most likely be in detention every weekend until he graduated. Okay, maybe that's exaggerating a little, but Harry was almost positive that would be his punishment.

Ten minutes had passed before Harry and McGonagall both looked up at the door. Seven arguing voice were coming down the corridor, heading towards McGonagall's office. The doors were shoved open by the Nikols' twins, while Draco and Theo each held one of Lullaby's arms, dragging her into the room, with Ron and Hermione bringing up the rear.

"Miss Lupin, thank you for joining Mr. Potter and myself. Please, have a seat. The rest of you may leave." Once the other six students left the room and closed the doors, McGonagall spoke to Lullaby. "Miss Lupin, Mr. Nott has told me that the reason for the actions of himself, Mr. Malfoy, and Mr. Potter was a result of a… lover's quarrel, so to speak, between Mr. Potter and yourself. Would you be so kind as to enlighten me?"

Lullaby glared at Harry, sending the unspoken message _'You brought this on yourself.'_ Turning to face McGonagall once more, she took a deep breath before explaining the whole story.

"Professor, a week ago, when the other schools arrived, during the feast, Harry asked me something unforgiveable. We fought over it. I kept telling him no, that we were too young, and there was so much going on in our lives for us to even think about it. He kept insisting on it. This whole week, I've been giving him the silent treatment, and was never alone with him."

"And what did Mr. Potter ask of you, Miss Lupin?"

Lullaby looked over at Harry, then down at the floor, which she directed her answer to.

"He asked to have sex with him, tonight. We're only fourteen, just found out that we're betrothed, and that our parents were best friends. I don't think that the 'birds and the bees' talk that he got this summer got through that thick skull of his. Daddy would be furious if he found out. And besides, tonight marks the fifteenth year since we were conceived, and the thirteenth year since his parents' death. I really don't think that he should be besmirching the night his parents gave their lives for him by doing something as disrespectful as having sex, even if it is with his intended bride."

McGonagall looked appalled. Without looking at Harry, she gave him his sentence. "Mr. Potter, in addition to your Hogsmeade banning until after Christmas, you will be serving detention with me every Tuesday and Thursday, in the evening after supper until midnight, and Saturday and Sunday, from right after lunch until supper time. Your detentions will last until after Christmas as well. I will also be informing the Headmaster about this, as well as Miss Lupin's father, and your relatives, of course. Your first detention is tonight. You're both dismissed."

Harry looked mortified. The Dursley's were no problem, since he wouldn't be seeing them again until summer, and none of them knew how to send Howlers, but Remus Lupin was a whole different matter. Messing around with a werewolf was dangerous enough, but when you messed with the child of a werewolf, well, let's just say the result would never be pretty.

As Harry and Lullaby left the office, their friends came to greet them.

"Lullaby, what happened? Are you okay?"

"Mel, I'm fine. The same can't be said for Harry, though. Four detentions a week until after Christmas, plus McGonagall will be informing Dumbledore, the Dursley's, and Daddy, of course." Lullaby looked over her shoulder at Harry. "You know, Harry, you brought this punishment onto yourself. I honestly can't believe you. You know what happened to my mother on Halloween in her fifth year. How could you possibly ask me to do something like that?"

Lullaby turned and ran off, tears running silently down her cheeks, as she headed down to the dungeons, where the Slytherin Common Room was. The seven other students in the corridor stood in silence, none wanting to confront Harry with McGonagall so close or to go and feel the wrath of an emotionally upset Lullaby Lupin.

Harry turned and walked defeatedly up to the Gryffindor Common Room, leaving the other six to stare after him. Once the raven-haired boy was out of sight, Hermione and Theo both motioned for the others to follow them to the usual meeting spot.


	41. After McGonagall, Before The Feast

Lullaby ran all the way down to the dungeons without stopping, until she ran right into the chest on one Professor Severus Snape.

"I'm sorry, Professor. Please, excuse me."

As she moved to walk around him, Snape put a hand on her shoulder, his face not showing any emotion.

"Miss Lupin, please come with me to my office. I think we need to talk. Professor McGonagall just firecalled me, explaining, in very little detail, about what happened in her office."

Lullaby dropped her head so that she was looking down at her shoes and nodded before following her Head of House down into his office. Once they were there, Snape motioned for her to sit in the chair across from his desk, while he sat behind it.

"Now, Miss Lupin, I would like for you to tell me exactly what happened. I had been made aware that Malfoy, Nott, and Potter got into a wrestling match in the Entrance Hall. I would like to know what caused it."

Lullaby raised her gaze slightly so that she was watching her professor through her eyelashes.

"Miss Lupin, I expect you to look me straight in the eye when you talk to me and when I talk to you."

Lullaby raised her head completely. After a few quiet sniffles, she began telling him everything that had been happening over the past week. How a week before, Harry had asked her to have sex with him, how she refused and he kept pushing the subject, and how the rest of their group had found out. She was pretty sure that Draco still didn't know all the details, but was certain that he would kill Harry the first chance he got. When she finished telling Snape everything, she looked back at the floor and her shoulders began shaking from the force of her silent sobs.

"It's almost like my mother all over again. Except a year earlier. And the houses switched. Did you know about that, Professor? That my mother was raped in her fifth year, by five Slytherin fifth years on Halloween? That she had gotten pregnant by one of them? That when he found out, he caused her to have a miscarriage? Draco and I would've shared an older brother. Lucius Malfoy was the one to get my mother pregnant. I don't want Daddy to suffer the memories again. This time, it would be his _angelito_, his angel. I know Harry won't force me after tonight, but it has nearly completely destroyed my trust in him. I don't think I even trust myself anymore."

Snape pinched the bridge of his nose. Of couse he knew about her mother getting raped; it had been a widely known fact in the school the whole next day. He did not, however, know about any of the other stuff. He remembered his teenage years, and knew he should've seen Lucius going and doing such a thing. The man had loved to torture muggles and muggleborns, even going as far as raping and murdering them. But to kill his own child was something he would never have imagined.

"Miss Lupin, I will make sure that Mr. Potter does not come within ten feet of you for the rest of the day, maybe even until noon tomorrow. Now, since there are nearly three hours until the Halloween feast, I suggest that you go take a nap or write in a journal, if you have one. You have had a stressful day. Before you go, I would like to know the identities of the other guys that raped your mother."

Lullaby looked up sharply, having not expected hearing such a concerned and angry tone from her Potions professor.

"Um, Mr. Malfoy had said there was him, Virgil Crabbe, Gabriel Goyle, Pierre Parkinson, and Timothy Nott. Is there any particular reason why you wanted to know?"

"Not really. It's just, I was in the same House and year as them."

"Oh. Well, I'm just gonna go and lay down for a bit. Have a good afternoon, Professor Snape."

Lullaby left the office without waiting for Snape's dismissal. She hurried down to where the entrance to the Common Room was, muttered the password, and ran up to her room, where she lied down on her bed, and fell into a fitful sleep, waking around an hour before the feast was due to start.

X X X X X

Harry sat in the Gryffindor Common Room, staring, unfocused into the flames that were in the fireplace. He had majorly fucked things up with Lullaby and his friends. And now, not only did they know, but also McGonagall, and most likely Snape, since he was Head of Slytherin. He knew that Dumbledore was going to be included in this, as well as Remus.

Harry tilted his head onto the back of the couch and closed his eyes, groaning his current misfortune. He was always attracting the wrong kind of attention, the worst kind of trouble, and this time was no different.

He didn't know why he had asked Lullaby to do something she didn't feel comfortable with, or why he was so insistant upon it. He knew that it wasn't the Imperious Curse, since he could throw it off, and he didn't know of any potions that did the same general thing. He sure wasn't going to ask Snape for help with this, if it was a potion.

'_I think I'll take my chances in the library, with Madam Pince. I know she won't hex me into next week.'_

Harry opened his eyes and got up from the couch, heading over to the portrait hole, and down to the library. He felt his mood brightening slightly, his luck changing for the better. He might not have been a Potions whiz, but he knew that there was no way for this to be a spell or curse, so that left a potion to be the only option left. He just hoped it wouldn't end up being a dead end for him. He had an hour before the feast was due to start, so dilly-dallying around for him this time.

X X X X X

Ron and Melody were sitting on a table by the window in their usual meeting place, an 'unused' classroom on the fourth floor, while Harmony stood by Draco near the fireplace, and Hermione and Theo sat on the floor by the door.

None of them had said anything since they had arrived nearly an hour earlier. All six of them had been too busy thinking; about how this would change their group; how this would affect Harry and Lullaby's relationship, though they were going to be stuck together whether they liked it or not; and how this would change their overall opinions of Harry and his behavior toward others.

Suddenly out of nowhere, Melody gasped and jumped up from the table. Everyone else in the room jumped nearly a foot in the air, staring at the 'golden colored' Gryffindor.

"I just realized that Harry would never do any of that of his own free will."

Harmony was looking at her sister, incredibly confused before it suddenly dawned on her as to what her sister was getting at.

"So, are you suggesting that Harry was under the Imperious Curse or something?"

"Not exactly. Harry can completely throw off the Imperious Curse, and possibly every other jinx that would put him under a behavior-altering spell. No, what I'm suggesting is the possibility of a potion that's designed to work the same way without the drinker knowing. I mean, think about it: Harry's behavior changed far too fast to be normal, and those of you that know him well enough should've recognized that little tidbit earlier."

Hermione and Ron look across the room at each other, both feeling ashamed at how they behaved toward Harry. Draco was looking at the floor, searching his mind for any possible potions that would cause a person to completely change their behavior.

"I can't think of a potion I read about, but I know someone who might be able to help. Granted, he really doesn't like Gryffindors, but I think that when we explain our theory, he'll help us."

"Draco, you're not talking about who I think you're talking about, are you?"

"Yes, Theo. Professor Snape. If anyone knows about these types of potions, it'll be him."

With that, the group of six hurried as fast as they could without running down to Professor Snape's office, urgently knocking on the door, waiting for the man to answer, which he did after five minutes, grumbling as he did so.

"Mr. Malfoy, Mr. Nott, you had better have a good reason for disturbing me."

Draco looked up at the Potions Master.

"Sir, we have a theory as to why Potter has been acting the way he has for the past week, and we need your help."

Snape looked around at the others, and opened the door to let them in, closing it when they were all in his office.

"Now, what do you need me to help you with?"

X X X X X

_Please review, but go easy on the flames, okay? I thank those who are still reading and haven't dropped the story because my characters are 'Mary Sue-ish'. I'm making my way into the troubled side of Lullaby, with Melody and Harmony following soon. Please, just bear with me. I'm writing three other Harry Potter fanfics at the same time as this one, so I'm a little off target from where I want to be. I thank you again for reading, and please review._


	42. Snape's Office

"So, which of you would like to explain this theory of yours?"

they all looked at Melody, since she had been the one to suggest the potion theory. Shaking slightly under Snape's gaze Melody began explaining.

"Professor, we know that Harry cannot possibly be under the Imperious Curse, since he's capable of throwing it completely off. We think that it might have been some kind of potion that has the same general type of effects on the mind and behavior. We want to know if there is such a potion, and if there is an antidote."

Snape stared at the bold Gryffindor. He thought that she was going to be very much like her sister: conceited, arrogant, and uncontrollable, but he had been proven wrong. She was a right smart cookie from America.

He moved over to his own collection potions books and began running his fingers over the titles, finally stopping on one labeled _**Comportamento Mutazione Potios**_. Pulling it out and setting it on his desk, Snape began flicking through the pages, searching for a potion that would cause the drinker to behave as Potter had been lately. He had just located the correct potion when the fire in his office flared green, and Remus Lupin stepped out, looking a bit ragged, but still healthy, and a bit furious.

"Where is my daughter? And where is Harry Potter? He and I have some things to discuss this evening."

"Your daughter is sleeping in her dormatory. As for Potter, I don't know where he is. And this whole thing might not be his fault. These six came to me with a theory that might just be the cause of this whole mess. I had just located a possible potion that would cause the boy to change his behavior. It is called the _Settimana-Lungo Libidine Potio. _The potion should be out of his system either later on tonight, or sometime tomorrow, if this is the correct one, and I'm fairly certain it is. Potter's behavior changed a week ago, and that leads me to believe that this is the correct potion."

Remus looked at Snape before looking at Harmony.

"Harmony, would you be so kind as to get my daughter for me?"

Harmony nodded and left the room, returning about 10 minutes later with Lullaby, who was blotting her eyes with a silk hankerchief, her eyes red and puffy from crying for the past fifteen minutes.

"Daddy! Oh, daddy, I don't know why he suddenly changed, but please don't hurt him. I'm sure it wasn't his fault."

Clearly, Harmony had told Lullaby about the potion theory.

Snape had been looking throught the potions book, trying to locate the correct had taken nearly twenty minutes, but he finally found it.

"The antidote for the potion is called _Comportameno Potio Inversione_. It's easy and only requires fifteen minutes to make. I'll get started. We have the feast and the Champion selection in half an hour. Mr. Lupin, I would suggest that you let the Headmaster know that you are here."

"He already knows. He's the one who informed me of this. Now, I wa-"

A knock on Snape's office door caused Remus to be quiet. Snape moved away from his desk, over to the door, and opened it slightly. There, on the other side of the door, was Harry Potter, panting from his run, clutching a heavy Potions book to his chest.

"Professor, I need your help."

Snape smirked. "Yes, I know that, Mr. Potter. Come in and join our little gathering." Snape moved over and opened the door, shutting it the moment Harry was clear of its path.

Lullaby hid behind her father, as though Harry would try and take her right there. No one said anything for a few moments, until Draco decided to break the silence.

"Professor, I think you should get started on that potion. We have twenty-five minutes."

Snape went through a door that lead to his private potions lab. The rest followed him, Harry looking around confused. Melody looked at him before speaking.

"I'm sure you're wondering what's going on. Judging by the book in your hands, you came to the same conclusion that we have. Professor Snape is going to brew the antidote for the possible potion that you might've drank."

Harry relaxed slightly, until he noticed that Remus Lupin was there, glaring at him, a feral look in his eyes. It sent shivers down his spine. He had known that when he got word, Remus would be enraged, but this quiet fury was disconcerting.

_Fifteen Minutes Later:_

Snape placed some of the finished potion into a tea cup and set it down on the table in front of the seat that Harry was currently occupying. Nervously, Harry reached forward and his hands wrapped themselves around the cup, bring it to his mouth. After he swallowed every last disgusting drop, Harry set the cup back down and closed his eyes, waiting for the antidote to kick in, which was less than a minute later.

He felt like a weight was lifted off his chest, allowing him to breathe properly again. That was when he realized that the pressure had been there since a week ago. His eyes flew open as he noticed the change.

"Harry, mate, how are you feeling?"

Harry looked at Ron for a moment before turning his gaze on Snape.

"I feel like a weight has been lifted off my chest, literally. I just noticed that a strange pressure has been on my lungs since last week. Professor Snape, what are the signs of the potion?"

"Nearly uncontrolable lust, for a week, sexual dreams more often than usual, and barely noticeable pressure on the chest. I know that you are inept at Potion making, and I seriously doubt that your friends would try a stunt like this as a joke. Is there anyone you know that would want to see you and Miss Lupin separated?"

Harry racked his brain for any possible people that would wish for such a thing, and coming up with two.

"I can only think of two, both highly unlikely, but still, I feel that it would be one of them. The first being Zabini. It's a well known fact that he wants what he can't have, and he has shown interest in both Harmony and Lullaby, though I doubt he'd be confident enough to try and give the potion to Draco. The other is Ginny. She accused me of cheating on her with Lullaby, even though I had just met her, and I was never interested in Ginny in that way."

Snape looked furious that Harry would even suggest a Slytherin in his presence, but the fact that he also accused a fellow Gryffindor had him greatly confused. Snape nodded his head then looked at the clock.

"We all must be getting to the feast. Mr. Lupin, I'll be sure to keep you informed."

Remus nodded then embraced his daughter, placing a kiss on the top of her head, before heading to the fireplace and Flooing back to his cottage. The rest of the people in the group were silent, waiting for Lullaby to dry her remaining tears. When she was finally ready, the group left Snape's office, heading up to the Great Hall, none of them noticing the two sets of angry eyes watching them from a very dark alcove in the wall…


	43. The Champions

_**A/N: So, so, so sorry about the really late update. College just ended for the winter, and I finally found the time to work on my fanfiction stories. Thank you for being so patient.**_

Dinner was filled with excited chatter, everyone trying to figure out would would be picked to represent their school. Harry and Lullaby sat with Hermione and Theo between them. Only the people who didn't know what was going on found this arrangement a little funny. Sure, they were speaking civilly, but the discussions were tense and showed that the ordeal was not yet gone from their minds.

Dumbledore stood up with Karkaroff and Maxime when Filch brought the Goblet of Fire into the Great Hall for the choosing of the Champions. All the lights in the room went dim, and the main sources of light was from the bright blue flames in the Goblet, which turned a bright red after a few minutes of silence. A piece of paper went high into the air before dropping into the hands of Dumbledore.

"For Durmstrang, the champion is Mr. Viktor Krum."

Cheers and applause rattled the windows of the Great Hall while Krum stood and walked over to the chamber behind the head table. As soon as Krum was out of sight, the Goblet turned red again and out came another piece of paper.

"For Beauxbatons, the champion is Miss Fleur Delacour."

Once again, the windows were rattled by the cheers and applause. Delacour joined Krum in the small chamber just as the last piece of paper erupted from the red flames of the Goblet.

"For Hogwarts, the champion is Cedric Diggory."

Since the student body at Hogwarts was larger than the other two visiting schools, the windows not only rattled, but literally cracked and broke, shattering into little pieces from the noise of celebration. Diggory exited the Great Hall into the chamber where the other champions were waiting.

When the noise in the Great Hall finally fell to quiet muttering, the Headmaster began a speech about one thing or another but stopped when the fire in the Goblet turned red a fourth time. The piece of paper that flew through the air landed in Dumbledore's hand and he paled as he read the name out loud. "Harry Potter."

Once again the noise in the Hall erupted, but this time it was mostly in outrage from the older students. Dumbledore looked at Barty Crouch and nodded, turning to face the student body. "HARRY POTTER!"

Ron and Hermione both pushed Harry from his seat, urging him to go find out what's happened. They knew that ever since they started at Hogwarts, some dangerous adventure would always find Harry each year, and this year would obviously be no exception.

Harry kept his head down as he walked past Dumbledore and the other tournament judges, the sinking feeling in his stomach dropping even more with each step. When he entered the antechamber, the other three students turned to look at him, silent questions in their eyes. Only moments later, the judges appeared behind him, and began asking him how he got his name into the Goblet of Fire. When he told them that he didn't have any idea about how it happened, they didn't believe him, it wasn't until Snape walked over did the interrogation stop.

Snape held out his hand, in which he had been carrying a small vial of Veritaserum, the Truth Potion. "Potter, open your mouth and swallow some of this. It's the only way we'll get to the bottom of this. Just take it."

Harry did what Snape asked without question, even though it caused some confusion for the others in the room. It was, after all, no secret that Harry and Snape hated each other. Snape nodded at Dumbledore and Crouch when Harry's eyes took on a glazed look, showing that the potion was in effect.

Dumbledore began questioning Harry again. "Harry, did you put your name into the Goblet?"

"No, sir. I did not."

"Did you ask an older student to do it for you?"

"No, sir."

"How did your name enter the Goblet in the first place?"

"I don't know, sir. It's possible that there's another scheme to try and take my life again this year."

"Oh? And what would make you say that?"

"I've nearly lost my life in the past three years here at Hogwarts. First year, it was with rescuing the Sorcerer's Stone, thanks to Quirrell. Second year, it was saving Ginny Weasley from the Basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets. You can thank Lucius Malfoy for that one, since he slipped Ginny the diary that belonged to Voldemort during his school days. Last year, there was the whole fiasco with Sirius Black and the Dementors, and finding out about Professor Lupin. Life or death situations are always around the corner for me here at school. I wouldn't surprised if someone was out to get me again this year."

Silence descended in the antechamber when Harry finished his explaination. Apparently, no one realized how much of the trouble that Harry got into was not his fault, but the fault of other people, most of whom were doing the bidding of Voldemort.

Dumbledore nodded and turned to have a private discussion with Crouch, Bagman, Karkaroff, and Maxime, leaving Harry to wait until the Veritaserum was out of his system, which was only a few more minutes. When Harry was clear-headed again, the judges were ready to determine the next course of action. Crouch was the person chosen to give him the news.

"Mr. Potter, even though you obviously did not wish to be in the tournament, the Goblet of Fire created an unchangeable, binding contract. You are to compete in the tournament, as a fourth Champion."

Harry and Snape both paled, though it was only obvious on Harry, since Snape was so pale already. A light-headed feeling overtook Harry, and he collapsed, saved from hitting the ground by Snape, who had been standing directly behind him. The room was spinning, and Harry could only see Snape's worried expression before he fell into darkness.

_**A/N: Sorry about the short chapter. I started another story, this one being a crossover. Reviews are welcome if they help give me reason to update sooner, with longer chapters.**_


	44. The Anniversary

_**A/N: Sorry about the long wait. Had to get through my second semester of school, and I just moved, so finding time to write an update was difficult, but now I'm back. I'm not promising weekely updates, but I can promise a couple each month, so forgive me for not being able to update. I will let you know that after this chapter, there will only be one more chapter. I planned on 50 chapters but now, I can't remember the direction I wanted to go, so you'll have to make do with only 45 chapters in this story.**_

It was night when Harry awoke in the infirmary wing of the school with Lullaby, Melody, Harmony, Hermione, Ron, Draco, and Theodore sitting in chairs around his bed, while Professor Snape was standing with the headmaster, Professor McGonagall, and Madam Pomfrey across the room, talking quickly but quietly. Lullaby was the first person to notice Harry was awake.

"Harry! You're awake! Thank Merlin! I was so worried. What happened? None of the adults would say what happened." Lullaby had tears in her eyes, but she refused to let them fall.

"I have to compete in the tournament, even though I didn't put my name, or have someone else put it in to the Goblet of Fire. I think I blacked out."

Before anyone else could ask questions, the clock chimed ten o'clock and the adults in the room ushered the seven students out, saying that they only let them stay until Harry rejoin them in the waking world. Lullaby said good night and placed a small kiss on Harry's forehead before following the others out of the room. Madam Pomfrey ran some scans over Harry and handed him a potion for sleeping while Professors McGonagall, Snape, and Dumbledore left the ward silently, leaving Harry alone once Pomfrey went to her chambers.

_D.L.L. D.L.L. D.L.L. D.L.L. D.L.L._

Reaching an empty common room, Draco, Harmony, and Theodore went to their respective dorm rooms, while Lullaby opted to sit and think in front of the fire for a while. It was half an hour later when Lullaby heard a noise coming for the stairs leading to the dorms. She relaxed, if only a little, when she saw that it was Blaise Zabini. After she turned back to thte flames, Zabini noticed her and smiled a predatory smile, sneaking his way over to her, casting silencing charms around the room.

"Well, well, if it isn't Potter's little girlfriend. What are you still doing up, Lupin? Wishing that your parents never signed a betrothal agreement?"

Lullaby studiously ignored him, which, apparently was the wrong thing to do, because out of nowhere, a hand slapped her across the face, sending her to the floor, stunned.

Before she could gather her wits together, Lullaby found herself with Zabini on top of her, ripping her blouse and skirt off before undoing her bra and pulling off her panties. In an instant, she realized what was happening but it was too late; before she could strike at him, Zabini was balls deep inside her, shredding her virtue and her sanity.

After a few minutes, Zabini pulled out and reached into his pants pocket, holding a shiny silver pocket knife, and placing it at her wrists and throat. He covered her with the throw blanket on the back of the couch, and left her to die in the Slytherin Common Room.

_D.L.L. D.L.L. D.L.L. D.L.L. D.L.L._

The alarms in Snape's private quarters went off, jerking the man into alertness. In a moment he was out of bed and out the door, black night robe whipping behind him. The alarm was in place to let him know when any student in his house was in grave danger. It was usually students that cut themselves to deep to stop the bleeding themselves and left them to weak to get help.

When Snape entered the Common Room, he didn't see anyone, but he did notice a lump in front of the fire place with blood coming out from under it and soaking the blanket over it. Pulling the blanket back, he gasped at what he saw: Lullaby Lupin, laying naked, wrists and throat slit, inner thighs covered in blood from her torn hymen, and her clother shredded next to her.

He cast charms to stop the bleeding and cleaned the blanket covering her before picking her up and flooing into the infirmary, calling for Madam Pomfrey to hurry. When the mediwitch checked her vitals, she sighed with relief that there was a pulse, barely, but it was there. She healed what she could while Snape tried to rouse Harry from his sleep, knowing that the girl had maybe an hour left to live if they couldn't save her.

With Harry by Lullaby's bedside, Snape floo-called Dumbledore, then Remus Lupin, letting them know what had happened that night. No one got any sleep that night; Snape and McGonagall retrieved Harry and Lullaby's friends and they all sat with the dying girl, who wouldn't be able to speak again, if she did survive.

Just before midnight, Harry watched as Lullaby's chest took its last breath, stopping right before his eyes. She had lasted longer than they thought, but she still didn't make it.

As Harry, Remus, and Sirius (as Sidney) sat around Lullaby's bed, Dumbledore spoke with Barty Crouch, Sr. about Harry's participation in the TriWizard Tournament. Crouch agreed that Harry wouldn't be able to concentrate on the tasks he had to prepare for while grieving, and so excused Harry from the tournament.

It was absolute hell, not just for Harry and Remus, but also the Nikols' twins, and Draco Malfoy. The blonde remembered what Lullaby had told him about his father, and realized that Lullaby was raped and murdered on the nineteenth anniversary of her mother's rape. Remus knew this information as well. He had been dreading every Halloween that his daughter had been alive. And Harry had lost his parents on Halloween thirteen years before. Life was just too cruel.

_**A/N: Sorry it's so tragic. I couldn't think of any other way of ending the story, even though there is one more chapter, which will be the funeral. Please let me know what you think.**_


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